By the Numbers

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Europe & America in Transition


Europe & America in Transition

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Europe and America seem to be changing from a once strong biblical Christian influence to atheism pantheism, and Islam. The steps of denial seem to be the justice of Hell, God as Moral Lawgiver, absolute truth and ethics, life after death, and the value of human life. Hang with me and see what you think.

The Worldviews of Atheism and Pantheism

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The Justice of Hell. To some people Hell is unthinkable of a good and loving God. It’s utterly cruel to caste every sinner together in an eternal lake of fire. They think persons aren’t so bad and would be good if encouraged and given ideal circumstances. And others don’t know, don't care and don't believe in the Christian biblical God and Hell. Pantheists believe in their working off their karma through many self-centered lives that end in absorption into universal energy.
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I blame the church in part for unbiblical preaching on God’s justice, love, and Hell. Fire and damnation gets people’s attention but can turn them away from the church. Persons go to Hell for their eternal rejection of God and His righteousness in Christ. Each is punished according to his or her own degree of knowledge and sin. Hell is God’s wrath against sin and the sinners own mental torments, not God physically torturing everyone equally in a lake of fire. God’s love is giving sinners witness in nature, conscience, the Bible, the Holy Spirit and godly people who tell them of the Savior dying to pay for our sin and give us His righteousness and eternal life. Justice and love are both sides of the same coin. So sin cannot be allowed in to corrupt God’s perfect Heaven and sinners must be confined to their own kind of place--Hell. See my other articles on Hell, God, and Heaven. Jesus said, “If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority" (Jn. 7:17). See also Jn. 3:36; 16:8-10; Luke 12:47-48; Jn. 19:11; Rom. 2:5-6; Heb. 10:29.
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God as a Moral Lawgiver. When God seems unjust as above, or as an impersonal principle or force as in pantheism, then we have no good reason to believe in a Moral Lawgiver. We may become passionate about some area of moral reform to give our life meaning. But when we believe the Bible’s teaching that God is a sovereign, holy, loving, wise and just Creator and universal Sustainer, then we have a sound foundation for moral law. We will never live without sin, but we will have understanding that a personal, ethical God exists who is our Authority and Guide. We can know His forgiveness, love, and look to being in Heaven with Him someday. Romans 2 give God’s principles of judgment.
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Absolute Truth and Morals. When we see no reason to believe in God as a person and Moral Lawgiver, we are shut up to nature and preference as our basis for truth and morals. Human conscience and compassion can dissolve. We can believe anything we like as true and right since there is no higher authority and all is flux. Human history is worship of ancestors, idols, rats, snakes. It’s sacrificing our children in fire; hunt other people’s heads, and killing enemies to receive their power. Pantheists are unconcerned with ministering to others and care only to work off their own karma to be better off in the next life. And the pantheist impersonal force can’t furnish ethical standards, nor reward or punish our behavior. How can we even know what karma demands? All such things occur in history and practices today in various places. Without a Moral Lawgiver and Judge, nothing matters, life is without ultimate purpose. See Romans 1:18-32.
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Life after Death. When persons die, lights out, they’re dead, and the worms take over. What happened to the life in them? Did it cease to exist, take another form, or go somewhere? Atheists say it ceased to exist so there’s no hope for live beyond the grave. Pantheists say it takes other forms until absorption. Christians say it went to another place either with God or in Hades awaiting resurrection and judgment. It’s difficult to see how atheism and pantheism provide any basis for life’s having any great purpose or value.  
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The Value of Human Life. If in death we cease to exist, or assume many lifetimes in various forms until absorption, what then are human beings value? Christians believe persons have great value being in the mental, moral, immortal image of God, being responsible to God, and existing eternally beyond the grave. All we do counts within time and for eternity. We must answer to God for how we treat our fellow man that gives persons ultimate responsibility and worth. But what value is soulless dirt or recycled energy waiting absorption? When persons are of little worth it doesn’t greatly matter how we mistreat and manipulate them.
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Selfishness seems the logical and practical outcome. So lying, cheating, stealing, killing, lawlessness, manipulation, and immorality seem reasonable. Do whatever you feel like doing that would seem to benefit you. When the general population sinks to this level, anarchy results. Thus, tyrants with grandiose promises arise claiming to correct the situation.
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 It seems that is where Europe and America is headed. Either a socialist or a Muslim government will gain control by gradual degrees using freedom to destroy freedom and claiming tolerance until they gain control to suppress all dissent. Or, it will come by open revolution and a blood bath. Tyrannical governments must secure control by suppressing freedom of speech and the press as well as religion. No higher power than government will be allowed. And education and wealth must be controlled as well. Knowledge and wealth are means of power and the government must be the only power. It decides who lives or dies, and what laws people must obey. Citizens will live in fear of a police state or of their own relations who will persecute, maim or murder them. It seems incredible that citizens rise up to destroy themselves, but it seems to be happening. Is there no chance to recover sanity, sense, decency and civility?

The Biblical Christian Worldview
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The Jesus of History Arose from the Dead Showing He is the God-man. There can be no doubt Jesus is a person in history who claimed to be God and arose from the dead. The four Gospels, sermons in the Book of Acts, and Paul’s letters written A.D. 33-70 tells about the resurrected Christ. And the N.T. letters contain creeds and hymns used in the early churches from 3-7 years after Christ’s death confirming His deity (i.e. 1 Cor. 11:23; 15:1-8: Romans 1:1-4; Phil. 2:6-8; Col. 1:15-18 and others).
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Those who would deny God exists and can take human form must furnish good evidence, not just spout their bias naturalist claim. At first skeptical Jews, often rebuked for being astonished at Jesus’ miracles, would never risk damnation in turning from Moses’ laws to worship the Triune God and meet on Sunday in honor of His resurrection, unless it was true. And let’s give them credit, they had more sense than to endure persecution and die brutal deaths for a known lie.
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Then, there is Life beyond the Grave. Because Jesus lives, we can face tomorrow with hope of one day living with Him in the new Heaven and new earth. From God’s perspective, His Son’s death paid for our sin, satisfied God’s wrath, brought forgiveness of sin, opened the door to Heaven, and defeated the devil. His resurrection demonstrated its all true. Though critics proposed a dozen or so theories to disprove His resurrection, all are shown to be leaky buckets.
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No world religion has eyewitness and early accounts of anything like it--not the Avatars of Hinduism, the myths of mystery religions, the divine claims of Caesars, or the philosophers’ arguments are anything that can stand up to Jesus’ resurrection. Praise God, He lives and so we know we can too!
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Jesus then is the God-man Who Walked among Us. What could prove God to us? Yes, science furnishes good evidence that points to God’s existence and shows evolution a hoax. Evils and conscience make sense only if there is a Moral Lawgiver.
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 But even supposing all that’s true, how can we be assured this God cares for us? And how must we live in relation to Him? Jesus set the example of pure clean living pleasing to the Father. He not only told us right and wrong; He showed us in our sweat, blood, and tears world. He knows what we go through since He endured more than we ever will. “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him (Romans 5:8-9).
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As God-man, Jesus affirmed the Bible is God’s Message to Humanity. Whatever God says is final authority. Jesus is God who walked among us; both told and showed us He is God. “The Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God” (John 5:18). Jesus later said to them, “You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me” (Jn. 5:39). See also John 14:25.
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The Recovery of Decency and Civility Requires a Change of Heart. Jesus said, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things” (Luck 24:46).
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If Europe and America will return to God and righteousness, they will be restored to moral freedom and prosperity. People the world over respected America as a land of freedom, opportunity, and prosperity. They would risk their lives to escape tyranny in their own lands. The government is what the people allow. So a corrupt government is only a reflection of a corrupt citizenry. Christians should run for office and make their voices known.
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Repentance must begin with the church that has grown lax in its beliefs and behaviors, its attitudes and actions. Few church people know the Bible and live any different from the world system of evil.
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 Christians must not be afraid or ashamed to speak out for righteousness. Let others know what the Bible says on moral and social issues. Dr. Carl Henry, a leading evangelical theologian, warned Christians would lose a voice unless they engage teachers, journalists, lawyers, politicians, scientists, artists, entertainers and every leader on both social issues and the gospel. With internet technology, Christians can now reach the world with God’s message of truth, love and hope. Pray and work to do this and see it all turn around. BECOME GOOD NEWS MESSENGERS.
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Let me recommend a New York Times bestselling author warning people about radical Islam’s program and objectives. They Must Be Stopped by Brigitte Gabriel.

1 comment:

  1. As with Nazi Germany, America is being hijacked by liberal socialist propaganda, lies,
    secret deals that deceive even those claiming to belong to Christ. See--
    Edward W. Lutzer, "When A Nation Forgets God". John W. Whitehead, "The Stealing of America".
    Robert H. Bork, "Slouching Towards Gomorrah".
    Dr. Mark A. Beliles & Stephen K. McDowell, "America's Providential History".
    Jonathan Hill, "What Has Christianity Done For Us?"
    Vern McLellan, "Christians in the Political Arena".

    ReplyDelete

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