The Survivors Remember ...

     This week and last, memorials are being held among the survivors of the Nazi death camps.  In Israel, these days are marked under the banner of Holocaust Remembrance Day.  For those of us who read of the atrocities committed by one human being against another, it is difficult to escape the emotions that accompany the tragedy of millions of lives lost; all because they were born a Jew.
     Our anger and tears and sympathy are displayed as we try to pay homage to those murdered, and we try to put ourselves in their place.  How would we have endured such blind hatred and evil?  Could we have survived it?  Are we even aware that the same unbridled hate is coming against Christians in the Middle East -- and will become a reality here at home?  Have we forgotten the lessons and the voices of history?
     The truth is, none of us can come close to knowing how horrific it was.  We only have the words of the few remaining survivors to keep the truth alive; to repudiate the attempts to rewrite history.  We should pay attention and listen carefully....
     Last Friday, on April 16th, Noah Klieger and Rabbi Israel Meir Lau raised the flag of Israel at the March of the Living in Poland.  Noah was one of the few Jews who survived Auschwitz; Rabbi Lau was the youngest prisoner to be liberated from Buchenwald. Neither would have dared dream at the time that one day they would participate in a symbolic march in memory of the millions murdered by the Germans.
     "The only dream that all the prisoners in the Jews' camps had was to live one day more than Adolf Hitler and survive the Reich of horrors he established. I was a prisoner at Auschwitz at the time, a nameless prisoner, with a number tattooed on my left arm. A prisoner without rights, whose life or death were determined by one SS officer or another.
      Can an ordinary person imagine hundreds of people sitting side by side at the latrine, the building in which holes were dug in the ground every half a meter, holes in which we defecated, many of us suffering from serious dysentery. An ordinary person definitely can't imagine that, just like he can't imagine standing for hours in the parade yard at the end of a working day, when the SS officers find out that one prisoner has not returned (they counted us when we left and returned from work). As long as they didn’t find the missing prisoner, as long as they suspected that someone had managed to escape, they made us stand there for hours. With no other option, we relieved ourselves while standing up. In the extremely cold weather, the urine and feces froze on our bodies and thin pajamas we were wearing. In the summer, the stench made hundreds of us – maybe even thousands – faint."
     There is the story of 80-year-old Rita Kasimow Brown, a recognized Holocaust artist, who always painted herself in her portraits in white.  " I think it has to do with the little white, not-so-white nightgown that I survived the whole Holocaust in."  Rita was just seven years old when the Nazis invaded her hometown of Turmolt, Poland.  In 1941, the Nazis rounded up the Jews there and put them in a ghetto.
     Rita's memories, like so many of the remaining survivors, are those of a child.  "What happened was we escaped the ghetto. We were hiding in all sorts of places, in barns, in bunkers, in all kinds of places with other people, but we got sick and had colds and then my father went away for a few days and what he did, he found another Christian family," she said.  "And there he dug a big pit under the stable and had a connection to the potato bin and a latch that you can open to the farmer's home," she recalled. "Now it was total darkness. We had a little light, from the cow shed, a little straw so there was a little light.  This is how we lived 20 months. We were hungry and fearful. It was just a living hell. It was a living grave," she said.
     As they lay there, Rita's mother taught her songs that she knew from the very cultured life she had led in her birthplace of Vilna.  "We sat like this and prayed and tried to sleep," she said, clutching at her heart.  Being awake was a nightmare, she explained, hour by hour, suffering day and night.  Most of her father's 12 siblings died while her little family of five stayed alive.
     "Being creative helped me survive and not only survive but keep my sanity," Rita said.  "I survived the Nazi murder machine, but the thing for us, the Nazi Holocaust survivors…we are wounded survivors."
     The Holocaust has not only affected those who lived through it, but the following generations.  David Hershkoviz would hear his mother screaming in her sleep as she relived the agony: a German soldier separated her from her own mother, who died at Auschwitz.  Hershkoviz's mother died two years ago. But through a "second generation" study course in central Israel, he's keeping her story alive. The Shem Olam Holocaust Institute is educating people like Hershkoviz to tell their stories when the Holocaust survivors are gone.

     And how many Christians share the story of journalist Nancy Beasley, who ignored the story of the Holocaust for too long?  When her Editor forced her to cover a story on the tragedy, she could no longer avoid it.  "I ended up going to a Kristalnacht ceremony where I think I heard my heart break because the survivors were talking about their family members who did not live, and it just changed my life completely," she said.
     "There was a woman named Raja Shlom and she witnessed the murder of her husband, her father and her father-in-law. And just moments before they were executed, she was talking to her husband. She'd taken some food [to him] and he said, 'Just save the boy, just save the boy,'" Beasley said.
    With the help of a German guard who had been her student, Shlom escaped with her mother, sister and the little boy, whose name was Emanuel.  "And she would say to the farmers as she went through the countryside, 'Don't be afraid. My son's name is Emanuel. That means God is with us,'" she told CBN News.  Those farmers along the way, hid the family.  Now 70 years later, Emanuel's son, Gadi, lives in Israel.  Beasley went on to spend the next 7 years writing that family's story in a book titled Izzy's Fire.  She wrote it to educate children so that they will not fall for the false narrative that God's enemies would have them believe.
     So what are the lessons for us today?  We not only see nations like Iran, who openly cry for the destruction of Israel, but the same evil intentions are being spearheaded against Christians, and it is spreading across the globe.  And if we think we will be spared Satan's plan to rid the world of those who belong to Jesus, then that's all the more reason that we should listen to these survivors.
     Evil will come as rapidly against us as it swept through Europe 70 years ago.  It will harden the hearts of your neighbors.  You will not recognize your family members or friends; they will suddenly become enemies if you do not step in line.  The stories you have read today are those of people who never dreamed that their lives would take that turn.  We must not refuse to listen to them or to learn from them.  Pray for strength to endure what is coming upon the earth, and pray that you will overcome evil with the testimony of Jesus Christ.  The Evil that overtook the world 70 years ago was not wiped out.  It just went into hibernation and is now awakening from its slumber.  We will soon feel it sweep the earth, and this time it is determined to win!

Psalm 50:15    "And call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me."


   

   

John 6:66

After this many of His disciples turned back 

and no longer walked with Him.

     John, Chapter 6, begins with a wonderful tribute to the affirmation of Jesus's influence on the Jews who came to see and hear this man from Galilee.  In fact, the second verse of the chapter tells us that a great crowd was following Him because they had seen the great miracles He had accomplished in healing the sick.  If you will recall last Sunday's blog post, these wonders and signs were undertaken by Jesus for the express purpose of giving Him an opportunity to share the Gospel message.

     The chapter continues with the feeding of the 5,000 near the town of Bethsaida.  The people were astounded by the miracle He performed of feeding the throng with only five barley loaves; and the miracle the next day of seeing Jesus approaching the shore in a boat manned by His disciples.  (They knew that the Disciples had left the shore to go fishing on their own, and that Jesus had not gone into the boat with them the evening before -- yet here He was departing from the boat!)  

     They were more than happy to call themselves His disciples and to receive Him as a Prophet from God and a miracle-worker when he fed them and filled their fleshly bodies with real bread and sustenance.  But when He begins to preach to them about a spiritual bread, and asks them to seek after the true Heavenly Bread from the Father, which is present in Himself, they begin to balk.  They don't trust in what He is offering, and want only that which satisfies their physical hunger. 

     He then gives them the litmus test of what it means to be a real follower of His.  He tells them that " I am the Bread of Life [that gives life—the Living Bread].  Your forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and [yet] they died.  [But] this is the Bread that comes down from heaven, so that [any]one may eat of it and never die."  Will they get it?  Will they believe and trust in what He says?  But they don't understand ... "How is He able to give us His flesh to eat?"

     But Jesus keeps delivering the same message -- to the crowds that follow Him, and in the synagogues where they gather to hear Him teach.  "This is the Bread that came down from heaven. It is not like the manna which our forefathers ate, and yet died; he who takes this Bread for his food shall live forever."  Still they grumbled and complained about the difficulty of understanding what He meant.  It was too hard and difficult and strange to understand.  No one else could understand it, and it was offensive to their ears and their culture.  John 6:60 finds them asking, "Who can stand to hear it? [Who can be expected to listen to such teaching?]".

     Jesus knew that they protested against His teaching behind His back, and confronts them by proclaiming that "some of you fail to believe and trust and have faith."  He then goes on to explain the astounding fact that "no one can come to Me unless it is granted him [unless he is enabled to do so] by the Father."  Then comes our selected Scripture for today ... After this, many of His disciples drew back (returned to their old associations) and no longer accompanied Him.

     Why did they reject His message; because that is, in essence, what they did.  And how does this relate to us, His modern-day followers?  Could we say that these disciples were members of His following, but not committed to believing His teachings?  They certainly seemed mesmerized by the miracles and satisfied when He fed them earthly bread, which they could understand.  But when He asked them to trust in Him and have faith in something bigger than what they were comfortable in accepting, then they were more than willing to depart from Him and turn back to the way they had come.

     How is it any different today?  How many people are "in the church", yet are not true Christians?  How many people profess to be "followers of Christ", yet reject the Word and its commandments?  Remember ... in John 6, those people who had difficulty with Jesus' teaching and who ended up turning away from Him are called His disciples.  The very question they asked, (Who can be expected to listen to such teaching?) shows the state of their heart.  They certainly don't want to take any responsibility themselves for such a teaching that is just too difficult to accept; it goes against common sensibilities and acceptable practices.  

     Do we not see this today among those who call themselves Jesus's disciples?  Don't they proclaim that the Word's teachings on homosexuality are too offensive and difficult to understand in light of what our culture has become?  And do they not refuse to understand the teachings against the shedding of innocent blood, and therefore find ways to compromise their faith in support of abortion?  There are people in Christ's Church today who have tried to make Jesus into a version of Himself that they can bend to their own purpose.  These are the disciples and the churches who promote same-sex marriage, homosexuality in the priesthood, and the premise that a woman has the right to terminate her unborn child.  

     They are more than happy to be called a "Christian" when the teaching of the Word is all about grace and love and feeding the poor.  But when the teaching starts making them uncomfortable, and they have to engage with a combative culture who doesn't understand what it means to trust and believe and have faith in Him, then they are more than willing to turn back (and away) from Him ... that teaching is just too hard to follow ... Who can be expected to agree with that?  

     Jesus is now asking us the same question that He asked His Twelve Disciples ... would they, too, turn and leave Him?  Then, as today, the true and faithful believers will cling to Him and not depart, saying, "We have learned to believe and trust, and [more] we have come to know [surely] that You are the Holy One of God, the Christ (the Anointed One), the Son of the living God."  Like those twelve faithful Disciples of old, we continue to walk with Him and trust in His every word and deed.  We will not reject Him!

Will Enforced Vaccinations Become The Law of the Land?

     The state of California appears to be at the forefront of forcing a showdown between those who are pro-vaccine adherents and those who maintain it should be freedom of choice.  I'm afraid that my "conspiracy" hackles are once again rising as this debate heats up.
     Supposedly the rush to law for mandatory vaccinations centers around an outbreak of measles, which originated last winter at Disneyland.  There was an immediate panic over all the deaths that would ensue, as infected children returned to their home cities and states.  The media did everything they could to fan the flames of fear and promote nationwide vaccinations among our country's school-age children.  There was all kinds of media buzz over "the outbreaks" of measles across the land.  But I could not find one report or statistic about run-away numbers of infected, or deaths.  Only one report said, "Measles count at 59 and rising" ... but that was nationwide!  We had that many in one semester of my elementary school in the 1960s.  And if I recall, no one died and no serious health issues ensued.  Is it all a sham for forced inoculations?

     If so, California is Ground Zero for amending state legislation which would require children at public and private schools to be vaccinated unless a doctor determines they should be exempt for medical reasons.
     But there has been some measure of success in stopping the government from forcing children to be vaccinated.  As of this last week, California SB277 has stalled, and the bill's author was given a one-week delay to alter the legislation in order to make it more presentable to legislators.
     At the heart of the debate are the issues of personal freedoms versus public health.  Some lawmakers were concerned that the bill would deprive unvaccinated kids of a constitutionally required education by barring them from schools.  And choosing to homeschool your children would not necessarily protect your children from the long arm of this law.  Some lawmakers said the way the bill is written, children who are homeschooled would be barred from group learning with other homeschooling families.
     It appears to me that this would be government "strong-arm" tactics.  By refusing to educate non-vaccinated children in the public schools, and by putting roadblocks in the way of home-schooled kids, the government is attempting to force it's own medical mandate on its citizens.  Not only is this a personal choice issue, but many parents are skeptical of the added chemicals in vaccines.  They simply do not trust across-the-board vaccinations because the government "says so".
     Just in case the "scare tactics" of the measles outbreak don't work, pro-vaccine advocates aren't above pitting parents against each other.  Children who cannot be immunized due to adverse reactions (those being treated for cancer, for instance) would be required to stay home for 21 days because another parent refused immunizations based on religious or anti-vaccine positions.  Do you see how it works?  Those who choose not to vaccinate (for whatever reason) are seen as the villains -- if everyone would just vaccinate their kids, then the state wouldn't have to quarantine anyone.
     So, here's how that thinking goes ... I don't really care or worry about what might be in those vaccines.  I think you should vaccinate your kids so it doesn't interfere with my child's education.  We should just all blindly follow what the state tells us.
     But parents who are skeptical of vaccines have usually done their homework.  It is not a knee-jerk reaction and they are well-schooled in the possible reactions that come with chemicals and multiple vaccinations.  They should not be forced to comply with government edicts regarding the health of their children.  As one mother stated, “I would leave the state” if the bill passes. “This is about informed consent. We should be able to make our own decisions.”  (Of course, a few hundred thousand unvaccinated immigrant children in your state should help you make that decision, right?}
     So we should all be watching California very carefully.  Those of us born with the "suspicious gene" will find it ironic that due to an inflated sense of alarm over a few cases of the measles last December, we now find, just a few months later, a bill before the California legislature that seeks to make vaccinations by the State mandatory.  If they are able to get this legislation passed, then it will become precedence for amendments to the law in the other 49 states.
    I do not think parents are being over-paranoid to mistrust vaccinations.  When one considers the government's interest in genetic engineering, and private pharmaceutical companies being funded to research nanobot medicine -- not to mention technological advances towards transhumanism -- one would be foolish to indiscriminately vaccinate your child.  As the California mother said, it is about informed consent ... the American people should become knowledgable on this subject, and they should demand their right to decide for themselves and their children.  Stay vigilant!

Addendum:  Public schools in Spokane, Washington are invoking a law that requires proof of vaccination before students are allowed to remain in the classroom.  Those who oppose the compulsory vaccinations must provide a signed waiver from a health care professional or be able to prove that they challenge it on religious grounds.  Coming soon to a school near you!

Revelation 18:23   "... and all nations were deceived by your sorcery."  [ The root Greek word for "sorcery" is actually pharmakeia (to administer drugs)].

The Best Defense Of the 2nd Amendment I've Ever Heard!

     I suppose the Sandy Hook tragedy will forever be used by the gun control crowd to further their talking points.  It's a conveniently emotional topic in which to rally support for more gun regulation and eventual transformation of the Second Amendment.  So, I wasn't surprised to hear it brought up again in an attempt to portray conservative Presidential candidates as the heartless gun nuts that the Opposition would like us all to believe they are.  But here is how you handle that trap ...
     Question:  In the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, a statistic surfaced putting support for background checks at 90%.  Did you go against the want of the nation, with your vote against Manchin-Toomey [which would have required background checks on all commercial sales of guns]?  And also, how does public opinion shape your response to national problems?
     Candidate's Response:  You know there's an old line ... there are lies, damn lies, and statistics.  You're right, that was a poll that was bandied around a lot, but you can find a lot of results in a poll, depending on how you frame the question.
     As you and I both know, we have a system of background checks in place right now.  When either of us goes to a federally licensed firearms dealer, there's a background check that is put in place.  What Manchin-Toomey was trying to do was extend that to every private sale between two individuals... to put the federal government [in the middle], (not in terms of having a system of background checks for federally licensed dealers) ... but for you and me, for two guys in a duck blind selling their shotguns, one to the other.  And the federal government doesn't have any business there.
     And if you ask the American people that, they don't want the federal government getting in between private consensual sales between individual citizens.
     And I would note ... when you asked about the role of public opinion polls ... when it comes to Constitutional rights, what matters is what the Bill of Rights says.  It doesn't matter what might be popular at the moment.  We've seen regimes across the face of the earth come and take away peoples guns; strip away their right to defend themselves.  And sometimes it's been very popular, and yet it is an inevitable prelude to tyranny.
     Our country was founded on a radical proposition, which is that our rights don't come from government.  They come from God.  And the purpose of the Constitution .... Thomas Jefferson said the Constitution serves as chains to bind the mischief of government.  And the entire reason for the Second Amendment is not for hunting; it's not for target shooting -- those are both wonderful; it's great to go with your family and your kids to go hunting or skeet shooting -- but that is not what the Second Amendment is for.  The Second Amendment is there so you and I can protect our homes, our families, our children, and our lives.  It's also there as a fundamental check on government tyranny.  And that ultimately is not subject to public opinion polls.  It's subject to the expressed protection of the Bill of Rights of the Constitution.
     My response:  Those who would seek to bow to public opinion as the ultimate decision-maker would lead us down that slippery path to tyranny.  Are they that naive?  Can they not look at history and see how easily the masses have been manipulated and have played right into their tyrant's hand?  All one has to do is read a concise history of how the Nazi Party used gun control to "cleanse" and "control"; first, their own nation, and then the nations they proceeded to invade and conquer.
     Did you know that in 1941, just days before the Pearl Harbor attack, Congress reaffirmed Second Amendment rights and prohibited gun registration?  Look how easily public opinion has been swayed in just 74 years!  So do you really want some public opinion polls to determine your freedoms and the right to protect yourself, home, and country?  Due to the proclivity of sheep to be easily led to the slaughter, how could you trust those opinions?  Based on the near ignorance of important issues by the populace in this country, public opinion polls is a ridiculous way to govern!  The Constitution is the best -- and only -- method by which we can maintain our freedoms.  The freedoms that were given to us by God should not be subject to the whims and impulses of the guileless masses.

By the way, that educated response to the Second Amendment ambush was Senator Ted Cruz.  You can hear his response first-hand by clicking on this link.

1 Peter 2:16   "Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God."

I Wouldn't Trade Places

     These past few weeks I have encountered soon-to-be high school and college graduates who seem desperate to hide their panic about their futures.  Faced with high unemployment rates and few options for sustainable careers, they are realizing that their choices are limited.  Add to this the fact that they are bombarded through round-the-clock technological "connectiveness", which is screaming the threat of war across the globe.  You can't blame them for feeling apprehensive about a less-than-bright future.
     And in case you think that other generations have faced similar fears and negative prospects, I would like to remind you that past generations stood on the foundation of a national faith in God, strong family values, and a solidly cohesive populace.  This generation of young adults has witnessed a battleground in all those areas, and stands on shaky ground.

     These college graduates pursued degrees because their parents still believed that a college education was the roadmap to success.  And you can't blame them ... education has always been a building block and a stepping stone to achievement and success, no matter what path you took in life.  But you can no longer expect that a job will be waiting for you at the end of that four years, or even with a graduate school degree.  Too many of our college graduates are working two or three temporary jobs in the simple hope of being able to move out of mom and dad's house!
     So where does that leave the high school graduate?  There is certainly nothing to encourage them to take on the debt of college; they see those who have gone before them in desperate search of a job.  Why go down that road?  And the military used to be a viable option for high school graduates and for building a career.  But I'm sad to say, that with the treatment that our military receives and the attempt to remove God from our armed forces, I no longer think that noble service to our country is a wise choice.
      While the Greatest Generation of WWII may have faced the ultimate Evil of their time, they could concentrate on defeating the Enemy without having to contend with transgenderism within the ranks, being accused of "white privilege", or being restricted from practicing their faith during wartime.
     I graduated from college during the Carter years and in the midst of a failing economy.  But I didn't have to worry about every comment being scrutinized for racism, while suffering under an oppressive culture that was trying to force me to bend to their sexual agenda, at the same time that I was trying to figure out how I was going to afford health care insurance.  I also knew that my church was a safe haven from the influences of the culture; a place where I knew I could receive God's truth about how to live my life.
     So, while the wealthy and elite are trying to discover the fountain of youth and ways to become immortal, I have no desire to be young again.  I cannot imagine facing a long life of our decaying national identity, or determining how to navigate in a world that I can no longer recognize or respect. That being said, I deeply desire to reach out to these young people; to help them maintain a sense of individuality and marching to a different drummer than society is forcing on them.  We may not have left them hope for a prosperous future, but we can still try to instill in them a notion of uniqueness and character and value as a child of God.  They're going to need it.

Revelation 21:7   "The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son."

We Have No Other Option ...

     Based on yesterday's blog topic, I found myself wondering how we, as American Christians, will stand in opposition to an Evil agenda within our own nation.  And there followed these thoughts ....
   
     I know we are not to have idols in this world, or lift any man above another.  But there are times when we will look to the example of righteous men, in order to know the path we are to follow.  My friends, that time is now.  Our culture is rapidly disintegrating into immoral chaos.  The opposition to Christianity is growing more hostile, as witnessed by the out-and-out distortion and lies that attempted to drive a small-town pizzeria out of business in Indiana.  (The effort failed, as individual Americans have donated over $800,000 to a fund to benefit the family business).
    It started with internet bullies hounding Christian individuals and businesses; accusing them of bigotry and discrimination if they refused to support same-sex marriage.  But, in the wake of the backlash to the Indiana Religious Liberty Law, and in the case of the Indiana pizzeria, remarks grew to include death threats and warnings of retaliatory arson.  How far is this culture, which is beginning to look more and more like Sodom and Gomorrah, willing to go?  Death threats and arson are nothing to sneeze at!
     But my real question is this ... how far are Christians and the Church willing to go?  Are we, as individuals, willing to take a stand for clear Christian principles?  Is the Church capable of abandoning its non-political position and becoming active in defending the Bible and God's will -- or is it bowing to the convenience and practicality of siding with the culture, despite the culture's embracing of immoral attitudes and lifestyles?

     And whom might we look towards to see how righteous Christians are to respond?  Last week was the 70th anniversary of the execution of a man who acted responsibly in his faith during one of the most evil times in history.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a deeply religious Lutheran pastor found himself in a dilemma ... when informed of the evil that was Adolph Hitler, and the plan to exterminate the Jews, how far is "too far" in order to stop that evil?  When confronted with something so offensive to God, is there ever an excuse for Christians to compromise, capitulate, or raise the white flag?
     Bonhoeffer didn't think so, and it cost him his life.  At the beginning of the Nazi regime, many members of the [Protestant] churches did not reject National Socialism on principle.  Suffering from the effects of their loss in WWI, many Germans were drawn to the German National People's Party and their idealization of the past.
     But a small group of pastors, including Bonhoeffer, became unified in the Confessing Church and  arose in opposition to government-sponsored efforts to nazify the German Protestant church.  They objected to the Nazis on moral and theological principles: they could not reconcile the Nazi state's claim to total control over the person with the ultimate sovereignty that, in Christian orthodoxy, must belong only to God.  It was their stated objective to resist state manipulation of religious affairs.  They tried to stay out of the political fray, and hoped to convince the Church to recognize the contradictions of being a Christian and a Nazi.
     But as the evil that was Hitler and his regime grew, pastors could no longer stay on the sidelines.  They had to choose between inaction, which was, in essence, condoning the atrocities towards the Jews; or becoming involved with plots to stop the madness -- even if it meant being part of assassination attempts on the Evil Mastermind, himself.  Many chose the safe route that included tolerance and turning a blind eye.  A few did not; with some being sent to concentration camps, where they survived the war -- or in the case of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, whose fate was to be hanged for his opposition to Hitler and his obedience to his faith.

     I have not been surprised at the efforts of the anti-religious to tear down the memory of martyrs like Bonhoeffer.  They must not let us see or hear the writings of such a man, who struggled with how to respond within his religious principles (and God's will) to a rapidly deteriorating national culture -- and who was not only unafraid to live for what he believed in, but was not afraid to die for it.
     I can only imagine the struggle within his spirit as he confronted the likely consequences of his actions.  One day he would have to stand before God and explain how, as a Christian, he could be complicit in murdering Hitler.  He finally decided that he would have to rely on God's mercy to understand that he had to stop Evil at any cost, even if it meant he lost his soul.  But it wasn't just his own soul he was concerned about.  Writing to his co-conspirators in 1943, he said,  "The ultimate question for a responsible person to ask is not how he is to extricate himself heroically from the affair, but how the coming generation is to live."
     Isn't it time we asked ourselves that question?  How are we going to leave this world for the next generation?  Have we already relinquished their ability to live a principled Christian life by compromising and weakening our faith?  In an effort to show our tolerance, have we allowed those who oppose our faith to become more intolerant?  Have we been silent when they should have heard us roar?  Like Bonhoeffer, do we have the courage of our faith and convictions -- or will we stay in the shadows, afraid to call attention to ourselves and to whom we serve?
     Those who don't want us to emulate men like Dietrich Bonhoeffer have called his words and actions "small, tentative, restrained, and ambivalent."  But the fact that I am writing to you 70 years after he stood in accordance to what he thought was God's will, points to a man who neither restrained himself from doing what he thought was right, nor faltered or doubted his Christian duty to shine a light on Evil.  May we all exhibit such Christian Courage and resolve to no longer collaborate with the Enemy.  Instead of being silent, let's speak up!  Instead of compromising, let's protest!  It's time to fight the darkness of our times.  We've given up too much ground and we need to hold the line!  We have no other option ...

For an excellent reference on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, read Eric Metaxas's book, "Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy."

James 4:17    "So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin."


   

Is It Déja Vu? The Threat To Hungarian Jews

     For the last few months everyone's focus has been on the Middle East.  Between the marauding barbarism of ISIS and the escalating threat of a nuclear Iran, the world's attention has been centered on the region east of the Mediterranean Sea.  Only the ongoing crisis between Ukraine and Russia has  momentarily distracted us.
     But there is a simmering and ominous hostility growing in Eastern Europe that we must not dismiss.  It is coming from Hungary, a country that we don't hear much about, but which deserves our scrutiny due to news surrounding its political environment.
     There is an increasing popularity among Hungary's youngest voters for a political party called The Movement For A Better Hungary, or Jobbik, as it is more commonly known.  So, why should the world be concerned about Jobbik?  According to Wikipedia, Jobbik is a Hungarian radical nationalist political party. The party describes itself as "a principled, conservative and radically patriotic Christian party", whose "fundamental purpose" was the protection of "Hungarian values and interests." Jobbik describes itself as rejecting "global capitalism", European integration and Zionism.
     Patriotism and Nationalism, by themselves, do not constitute a threat; indeed they can result in a pride that translates into changes for the betterment of any country.  But when they are combined with  strict biases against religions and the full participation of every citizen in the nation, then alarm bells should be going off.
     For their part, Jobbik has rapidly ascended to the second most popular political party in Hungary.  They reject globalized capitalism, and the influence of foreign investors in Hungary.  Jobbik specifically opposes Israeli and Jewish investment in Hungary, even to the point of protesting the World Jewish Congress's choice to locate their annual meeting in Budapest in 2013.
     Then there is the issue of what they call "public order."  The Jobbik Party wants to greatly strengthen the National Police, and they once had strong ties to the Magyar Gárda militia, the paramilitary wing of the Party.  This militia was founded through an "oath of loyalty to Hungary" by its members in August 2007, but was dissolved by the Budapest Tribunal in 2009.

     Their radical nationalistic ideology was well represented in the Party's 2009 election slogan "Hungary belongs to the Hungarians".  But I discern cause for alarm when the editor of a police union newsletter (who was also a recent Jobbik Party candidate for the European Union parliament) prints the following:  "Given our current situation, anti-Semitism is not just our right, but it is the duty of every Hungarian homeland lover, and we must prepare for armed battle against the Jews."
     In November 2012, the party's deputy parliamentary leader, Márton Gyöngyösi, posted a video speech on the Jobbik website in which he stated: "I think such a conflict makes it timely to tally up people of Jewish ancestry who live here, especially in the Hungarian Parliament and the Hungarian government, who, indeed, pose a national security risk to Hungary."
     In 2014, the deputy chairman of one of Jobbik's County organizations, referred to the Holocaust as "holoscam".   And just this week, the Jobbik Party has won its first ever individual constituency seat in parliament.  Considering that 550,000 Hungarian Jews were killed during the Holocaust, how would you feel if you were one of the 100,000 Jews currently living in Hungary?  Even though you constitute the largest Jewish community in Eastern Europe, would you feel safe?
     Or would you feel that you were experiencing déja vu?  Does anyone else see shades of the nationalist German movement that resulted in Nazism?  Like the Nazi Party, the Jobbik Party opposes capitalism, and appears to resent the success and participation of Jewish businesses.  And the suggestion by the Jobbik Party that Jews and those of Jewish ancestry be "tallied" is too close to the Nazi sentiment which called for a united Greater Germany that would deny citizenship to Jews or those of Jewish descent.  Will they soon institute the wearing of a yellow Star of David to identify all Hungarian Jews?  Plus. who can deny the similarity of the Jobbik paramilitary wing to the Gestapo, the Nazi secret police whose job it was to investigate treason, espionage, sabotage and criminal attacks against the German state?
     For now, the World Jewish Congress is expressing its concerns about the rise of the Jobbik Party in Hungaray, while trying to keep the lines of communication open.  But the resemblance to the rise of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party cannot be ignored.  It has only been 75 years since the world chose to turn a blind eye to the popularity of a charismatic leader who proclaimed the need for nationalistic pride and for the eradication of the Jews.   Surely, this time we will not be so slow to condemn the powerful surge of politics that will lead to another Holocaust!  Now is the time to keep the wolf from the door!

Malachi 3:6    "For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed."

Coffee and Christ

     Thanks to the Christian Broadcasting Network for this upbeat story.  It's a great way to start off the week, and we can all use a little "good news", don't you think?

     

     Two churches nearly 1500 miles apart, have discovered a way to combine Christian Charity and Coffee.  The Woodlands Church, outside Houston, TX, was among many faithful churches who sent relief workers to Haiti after the country was devastated by the 2010 earthquakes.  But instead of concentrating their relief aid to the major cities, they went to work in the mountains of Haiti.
     "We were there and saw that there was coffee actually lying on the ground, coffee beans lying on the ground, just scattered. And we asked, 'Tell us about that? What's going on?,'" Chris Shook, co-pastor and director of missions at Woodlands Church, said. "And they said, 'Well, no one will buy our coffee. We have no one to sell it to.'"
     The remoteness of this particular village made it difficult for them to get their harvest to any kind of market.  The result was villagers who were starving; hadn't enough clothing; and their kids were going uneducated.  It didn't take long for the good Pastor to realize that they could help.
     Coffee is almost an obsession to many Americans.  Pastor Shook arranged for the village's coffee crop to be shipped to Miami, and then trucked to Houston.  Volunteers at the Church roast the coffee beans, package it, and sell it to the congregation, which "drinks it like crazy".  With over 18,000 church members, the built-in market for the Haitian coffee is now helping close to 8,000 Haitian family members.
     The Church pays the Haitian farmers three times more than other coffee dealers were offering them; and after it is sold, the profits are funneled back into medical clinics and feeding and teaching programs.
     Meanwhile, the National Community Church (NCC) in Washington, D.C. has a similar approach to help coffee farmers in Columbia, South America.  Their brand of coffee, called Redeeming Grounds Coffee, is grown in a guerrilla conflict zone notorious for kidnappings, car bombings, and assassinations.
     While on a mission trip to work with Columbian children, Church members met a local pastor who told them about farmers in a mountainous area who, after coming to faith, eradicated their cocaine fields and planted coffee in its place.  When they met the farmers, the coffee fields were ready to harvest, and a partnership was born.
     Church member Santiago Moncada said the coffee is not only sold in D.C., but on Redeeming Grounds Coffee's website.  "The response in the U.S. for this coffee has been great, so things are growing... And with just the few farmers we started with, we have already eradicated over 55 acres of cocaine fields.  That translates to about 1,700 kilos worth of cocaine off of the street, with a street value of over $80 million."  No wonder they call their coffee, "Redeeming Grounds"!
     How the profits from the business are spent, is determined by the coffee farmers, themselves.  But money is not the only benefit from this partnership.  Moncada said, "[People] are always curious to understand why it is that these farmers are planting coffee instead of cocaine, because of the reasonable assumption that cocaine farming is certainly much more lucrative. And that's when we get a chance to share the heart behind it.  We get a chance to share the testimony of these farmers and how coming to faith convicted them to make this change."
     Pastor Shook in Houston sees a similar benefit from his church's affiliation in Haiti.  "People see us coming back as a church, time after time, and doing things, not just to make us feel good, but [doing] things they actually need in their community.  We always say  'Christ plus caffeine really works because we can change the world twice as fast because we drink so much coffee.' "
     No one can deny the addictive capacity of coffee.  Just consider the explosion of major coffee chains, such as Starbucks, as well as the mom 'n pop coffee shop in every little town across the nation.  But when you combine it with the addictive power of the Word, you find it's a dependency you can embrace.
     Congratulations to these two representatives of God's Church for their industriousness and their ingenuity.  May God continue to bless their enterprises!

Psalm 34:8     "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!"

John 14:12 ... "You Will Do Even Greater Things Than These..."

 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, if anyone 

steadfastly believes in Me, he will himself be able to do 

the things that I do; and he will do even greater things 

than these, because I go to the Father.

     It is my sincere desire that you will see the Truth in this Scripture and what it is telling us in our day.  The context in which Jesus is speaking is the night before His death, when He partook of the Passover Seder with His disciples.  

     He has announced that one of them will betray Him, and that He will soon be leaving them.  He also foretells Peter's denial, which understandably upsets His followers.  They cannot conceive of the ministry without Him, and they want to know where He is going and how they are to follow Him.

     Christ comforts them by telling them that He is going away to prepare a place for them, and by now they should know who He is and believe that He and the Father are One.  At the very least, they should know Him by the works that He has done.  And then He gives them the astonishing news that is our Scripture today:  If anyone believes in Him, they will be able to continue His work, doing as He has done.  Better yet, they will do even GREATER things!

     Have you ever taken these words to heart?  What is Jesus saying?  If we are able to do the things that He did, don't you think we should be clear regarding what He is talking about?  What, exactly, are "the works" that He did?  

     First of all, Jesus's ministry on earth consisted of the following:  1)  He preached the Gospel.  2)  He healed the sick.  3)  He cast out demons.  4)  He made Disciples to spread the Gospel.  So here's my question ... Did Jesus say that after He was gone, they would only be able to do some of the things He did?  No!  In fact, we see the Disciples throughout the Book of Acts performing miracles of healing.  In Acts 3, Peter heals a man who has been lame his entire life.  In Acts 5, we read that the sick were brought to the apostles in the hope that even their shadow would pass over the sick and heal them.  In Acts 20, we find Paul resurrecting a man from the dead by simply putting his arms around him.  

      We also have many examples of the casting out of demons.  In Acts 8, Philip is in Samaria, preaching Christ.  And demons began pouring out of the listeners as they believed in Philip's preaching of the Gospel message.  Mark 6 reports of the Apostles preaching across the countryside of the need for men to repent of their sins, "and they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them."  Acts 19 even records that the mere touch of Paul's handkerchiefs and aprons resulted in "diseases departing from them, and the evil spirits went out of them."
     To the detriment of Christ's Church, I have often heard the statement, "That authority and those powers were given to the Twelve Apostles.  They were not given to us."  I disagree.  If you will recall, Jesus sends 70 disciples out into "every city and place".  What are their marching orders:  "Heal the sick, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you" (Luke 10:9), and "I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy..." (Luke 10:19).
     These 70 people were not among the Twelve Apostles.  They were nameless, faceless followers of Christ; just like us.  They were to heal the sick and announce that the Kingdom of God was near them in the actual presence of Jesus.  We are to do the same -- use the power that we have been given and announce that the Kingdom of God resides in us, and is available to all who will hear the message of the Gospel.  Granted, I believe we have been given a measure of the authority that the Apostles had.  But as we prove our trustworthiness, he will give us more authority to accomplish things in His name.
     And that leads me to the important point that it is by the authority of Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit that we are able to do greater things than He.  The ability to cast out demons and heal the sick is by no means due to us.  Remember the story of the demoniac son in Matthew 17:14-21?  A man approaches Jesus and asks for mercy upon his son, who is tormented by demons.  The man had brought his son to the Disciples, but they could not cast out the demons.  In a moment of frustration, Jesus calls them a "faithless and perverse generation", and proceeds to "rebuke the demon, who departed out of [the child]."
     When the disciples come to Jesus and ask why they were unable to cast out the demons, Jesus tells them "Because of your unbelief ... this kind only goes out by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:20-21).    We don't get much explanation beyond this, but it seems reasonable to me that Jesus is saying, You guys were depending only on yourself. Where was the prayer? Where was your sense that the power was God's, through you?  
     So unbelief is a very important issue as to whether God's authority and power are going to be released in my life.  I believe that we have absolute authority through Christ, but the measure of my power is relative.  Whether we are able to defeat demonic forces in ourselves or others relies on the power we exercise.  If that power is compromised by unbelief, fear, rebellion, pride or other sinful emotions, then our authority may be undermined.
     Then there is the fact that Christians today will say that Jesus despaired of those who required signs and wonders in order to believe (John 4:48), and that He would not desire us to cast out demons or heal the sick in order to "prove" the validity of the Kingdom of God.  But we must be careful to consider the context in which He said this.  The demand for these "signs and wonders" in Galilee contrasted with the ready reception (in prior verses) which the Samaritans had given by simply hearing His word.
     So, Christ recognizes that some people will need to see signs and wonders to bolster their weak faith before they can grasp any recognition of the blessings of the Kingdom.  Paul confirms this in 1 Corinthians 1:22 -- and, being a Jew, he knows firsthand, that "Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom."  That being said, Christ does not condemn those who need signs, because He knows that these "works of signs and miracles" may lead some to true faith.  But I think we can see how He compares those who need signs with those who don't, when He says to Thomas, "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."
     As followers of Christ -- in fact, the Church is His body, and the fullness of Him is to be in each one of us -- we should be aligning our lives to release that authority and power into the world, while proclaiming "the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe; according to the working of His mighty power."   (Ephesians 1:20).  And what is that power?  It is the power that raised Christ from the dead!  As fellow heirs of the Kingdom of Christ, the authority of God that's in Jesus Christ is shared with us.
     When Jesus Christ left us on earth He said (I'm paraphrasing), "All authority's been given to me, and now I'm commissioning you. You go out, and you make disciples just as I did. All that I did and all that I taught you, you do the exact same things. You teach others the exact same ways."  Jesus did all that as fully man, using the authority and power that was given to Him by God, the Father.  Why are we afraid to do the same?  It is clear to me that we are instructed to continue on.  Jesus modeled the life we are to live for the Kingdom.
     The bottom line is that I want to follow His example and be used by God to help others be set free, to come into the kingdom, and experience the power of God.  This is not about me thinking that I can become what's called a "deliverance minister".  I have no calling on my life to do so; although, clearly, there are people who do.  I simply want to come into the fullness of who I am in Christ, and to exercise the power and authority from God over my own spirit and body.  Then I will be able to witness to others of the power and authority of Christ that is in me; the power and authority which is in all those who belong to the Kingdom of God.
     SIDE NOTE:  For those who will say that Christians cannot become "possessed" by demonic spirits, I want to make myself clear.  We, as humans, are made up of spirit, body, and mind.  Certainly, if we have received salvation in Christ Jesus, our spirits are sealed and belong to God.  But, our bodies and our minds can be afflicted by demons in order to take our eyes off our commission.  How many Christians do you know that are plagued by pornography, fits of anger, depression?  How many suffer from chronic and debilitating illnesses?  I believe that if Christians were aware of the power and authority they have to rebuke the demons that are attacking them, they could overcome many of their personal sins and problems.  Obviously, those who are indwelt with legions of demons should seek deliverance from a Christian who has received the calling and training.
     CONCLUSION:  The Westernized Church of Jesus Christ must come to the fulfillment of our Commission.  Can we agree that our mission includes doing the works that Jesus did?  And can we also agree that today's Scripture (John 14:12) records Jesus promising that not only will we do the very works that He did, but that we'll do greater works than He?  If we are going to go about fulfilling the Great Commission and doing greater works than our Lord, then we are going to need a greater authority and power than ourselves.  God knew that, and that's why He gave it to us.  We have that power right here, right now.  It's the same power that raised Jesus from the dead!  It's time we used it for His Kingdom!

Do You Doubt My Authority?

     Today my husband and I will be celebrating the last Sabbath of the Passover with a faithful group of Believers.  We will be presenting a historical view of the Exodus, and reading the Bible's account of the first Passover and its past, present, and future significance, both to practicing Jews and faithful Christians.  I say, "we", because I want to comment on a divisive issue within the Church and among some denominations.  I will be presenting a lesson prior to our Passover meal, while my husband will lead our group through a more formal ceremony of eating and prayer.  Together, we will lead our worship and observance.
     I understand that to some, the fact that a woman has a leading role in such religious ceremonies, is troublesome.  Those who object will most likely refer to 1 Timothy 2:11-12:  A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.  Because men were part of our gathering, some would find my role objectionable.
     By the way, this is the only verse within the entire Bible that I can find that speaks to a woman not having the authority to teach men.  So, without a confirming witness, I decided to take a deeper look at this conflict and see within what context the Apostle Paul made this statement.
     As always, I find that our English translations of the Bible leave something to be desired when comparing them to the original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts.  Such is the case with the central word in the argument against women leading men in instruction ... it's the word, authority.  It seems that a study of Paul’s letters shows that he regularly used a form of the Greek word “exousia” when referring to the use of authority in the church.  But in this particular verse, Paul used the word "authentein".  This unusual Greek verb is found only once in scripture and rarely in extrabiblical texts, where it is usually associated with aggression.  Authentein is translated as “domineer” in the Latin Vulgate and New English Bible and as “usurp authority” in the Geneva and King James Bibles.

     So if Paul used the word exousia when talking about the use of authority in the church in 1st and 2nd Corinthians, Colossians, 2nd Thessalonians, and Romans; why would he choose to use authentein to refer to the same thing in 1 Timothy?  Could he have been referring to something else?
      This is where the context of this passage is so important!  In the case of 1 Timothy, Paul was writing a personal letter instructing Timothy about how to deal with heresy being spread by false teachers in Ephesus. This is spelled out at the beginning of the letter: "As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach false doctrines any longer or to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies…".
      On the surface, there are a few things to consider when correlating this warning with the suggestion that Paul meant women had no authority in the church.  1)  Could it be that most of the teachers of false doctrine in Ephesus were men, and that women might have had little training in theology; making them subject to repeating these false doctrines?  It would seem to me that Paul might have been warning the Ephesians that any interest in these false doctrines by women might become dangerous to the Church.  If that is the case, then this warning in 1 Timothy is specific to that church in Ephesus, at that time -- not meant to be a permanent restriction on all women for all time.
     2)  Keeping the context of this letter and these verses in view, remember that Paul was writing to the Church in Ephesus; a city known for its worship of goddesses, as well as heretical Gnostic teachings.  Some of the Gnostic texts of the time sometimes described Eve as Adam’s teacher. She is also depicted as superior to Adam, as preceding him, and as giving life to him in some way (part of the goddess obsession).  His admonition that women should not assume authority over a man might have been in answer to these Gnostic teachings.  (The Gnostic teachings on Eve could be what Paul is referring to in 1 Timothy 2:13-14 when he pointedly explains that Adam is the superior one, not Eve.  Reading these verses out of context to what was going on in Ephesus gives a completely different meaning).
     3)  Then there is the contradiction between other examples of Paul's writings where he provides instructions for women praying and prophesying in church (1 Corinthians).  When Paul mentions the spiritual gifts, he does not state that women are restricted from receiving any of the leadership gifts.  And it is interesting to note that he takes special care to record commendations to a number of women serving in leadership positions (Romans 16).  Can we agree that Paul is generally supportive of women’s participation, which contradicts the idea that women must be silent?
     But I keep coming back to that word authentein.  The mystery of why Paul used that particular word instead of his more common use of exousia drove me to dig deeper.  Why did he include this passage about women and authority in a letter that began by warning against false doctrines and myths?  As expected, the uncertainty of 1 Timothy 2:11-12, has resulted in much historical study of the times.

The goddess Cybele and her consort, Attis

     It seems that in Timothy’s time and locale, the goddess Cybele (called Artemis by the Greeks) was worshipped through violent rituals against men that symbolized the murder/suicide of a false god named Attis.  In his letter to Timothy, Paul repeatedly warns against false doctrines, mythology and extreme forms of self-denial (1 Timothy 1:3-7, 4:1-5, 6:20-21), even referring to the false teaching and related practices as “demonic”.  The violent act symbolizing the death of Attis was indeed an extreme form of self-denial.  Male priests of Cybele and Attis renounced all sexual feeling, irrevocably, through ritual castration.
     When the 5th Century Christian theologian Jerome translated 1 Timothy for the Latin translation of the Bible, he forever changed the meaning of our contested verses.  Let me explain.  He translated the key verb authentein as "to exercise authority", and rendered it more in terms of “having dominion over” or “dominating” a man.  Prior to Jerome's translation, the word more commonly referred to the instigation or commission of an act of violence, suicide or murder.  In the Greek Septuagint, for example, a noun form of the word (authentas) refers to those who engaged in ritual violence in the worship of a false god.
      Are you starting to see the connection between Paul's initial warning against false doctrines and false gods or myths, and the more accurate interpretation of giving his prohibition against women teaching or instigating ritual violence against men?  It's all in the context of what was going on in Ephesus!  The nature of Paul’s concerns, the most common meanings of the verb “authentein,” and the religious and cultural context in which these verses were written are all lost in Jerome’s Latin translation of 1 Timothy 2:12-15.  Subsequent translations into German and English followed Jerome's misleading example.  Concerns about women becoming involved in false teaching and violent rituals were replaced with warnings against leadership and teaching roles for women in the Church.  It seems very possible that Paul's true counsel was lost in translation!
     I recognize that this new understanding I have projected is only a theory; and I also discern that it will likely not change the 1600 years of bias against women as having a place in the Church's ministry as teachers.  (Note that I said "teachers", not pastors -- this is NOT an argument for women Pastors or Preachers).  Believe me, I am no feminist looking to usurp the leadership of men -- I am simply trying to put forth the argument that the Lord has bestowed the spiritual gifts of teaching and prophesying and wisdom upon women as well as men.  Why would any man deny himself the benefit of learning from a woman whom the Lord had blessed?  Certainly, Priscilla played a major role in furthering Apollo's education on the full gospel of Jesus (Acts 18).  Again, it's ironic that in a time when women could not be legal witnesses, Jesus Christ chose women as the first witnesses of his resurrection.  We can still be witnesses of His glory today, to all who will listen.

For a more comprehensive look at the ancient Gnostic teachings, false doctrines, and translation errors that contributed to our confused understanding of 1 Timothy 2, please click here.  My thanks to Bob Edwards for his outstanding research and commentary.

Acts 2:17-18    And it shall come to pass in the last days, God declares, that I will pour out of My Spirit upon all mankind, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy [telling forth the divine counsels] and your young men shall see visions (divinely granted appearances), and your old men shall dream [divinely suggested] dreams. Yes, and on My menservants also, and on My maidservants, in those days I will pour out of My Spirit, and they shall prophesy [telling forth the divine counsels and predicting future events pertaining especially to God’s kingdom].