How quickly we lose our Thanksgiving

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“It’s not easy to be joyful in this life. Our emotions at times can seem to control us, but the one thing that our emotions and life circumstances cannot take away is our future. Hell has been defeated and heaven has been won, it is guaranteed, so we have a whole eternity of blessing to be thankful for.” 

(Jordan Standridge – The Cripplegate)  There was a beeping sound that wouldn’t stop.

I mean, what kind of restaurant would seat a party of eight next to this unceasing, annoying sound? Continue reading →

Humanity’s Debased Mind

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching ∙

“Since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.” – Romans 1:28

Homosexual behavior, in particular, demonstrates the exchange of what is good and natural according to God’s created order for that which is evil and unnatural. Thus, it is an especially blatant form of idolatry, of telling the Creator that one will not have Him as Lord but will worship and serve the creature (Rom. 1:24–27). This sexual twisting, however, is not the primal sin of humanity; rather, it is the ethical outworking of the fundamental transgression, namely, the refusal to honor and thank God (vv. 18–23).

Furthermore, homosexual behavior is not the only way our fundamentally idolatrous dispositions show themselves. As we will see in tomorrow’s study, there are innumerable ways in which idolatry bears unethical fruit. Today’s passage, however, introduces the vice list Paul provides in Romans 1:29–31, reminding us once again of the root of all evil. View article →

11-Year-Old ‘Trailblazing’ Child Drag Queen Promoted on Good Morning America

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“He’s just a little boy, call it whatever you like, you know he’s being used as eye candy for incredibly sick and twisted people, God forgive us all for allowing this …”

(Michael Foust – Christian Headlines)  ABC’s Good Morning America celebrated an 11-year-old drag queen as a trailblazer this month, although many viewers pushed back and said the show had crossed the line in sexualizing children.

Host Michael Strahan introduced a video of Desmond Napoles — also known as “Desmond Is Amazing” — by saying the child was “inspiring to many” and was “trailblazing” a path for other children. Strahan also called it an “amazing story.”  Continue reading →

Michigan College Cancels ‘The Vagina Monologues’ Because ‘Not All Women Have Vaginas’

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“Apparently, many of the people who liked the iconic production, which is centered on stigma surrounding female anatomy, still felt it should be updated to include people who don’t have female anatomy.”

(Tré Goins-Phillips – Faithwire) Leaders at a college in Michigan decided to cancel its production of “The Vagina Monologues” because it’s discriminatory, given “not all women have vaginas.” Continue reading →

10 Ways to Share the Gospel During the Holidays

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Michelle Lesley made a list of the ways in which Christians can share their faith with the lost during the holidays should the opportunity arise. Here are her suggestions:

With all the hustle and bustle during November and December, it’s easy for the gospel to get lost in the shuffle. But the Great Commission never takes a vacation, and the holiday season provides some unique opportunities for sharing the gospel that we don’t have during the rest of the year.

1.

If your family does the “let’s go around the table and say what we’re thankful for” thing at Thanksgiving, briefly express your thanks to Christ for His death, burial, and resurrection, and for saving you. Continue reading →

Tullian Tchividjian Back in the Pulpit at ‘Leave A Mark Church,’ Columbus Ohio

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“By a quick survey of the facts,Tchividjian is a serial adulterer, serial marrier, and practical antinomian who is still under the discipline of his presbytery. That will not stop him from taking the pulpit of a Columbus church [November 17 & 18th].” 

(JD Hall – Pulpit & Pen)  Tullian Tchividjian, the grandson of Billy Graham who has been forced into resignation in two ministry positions for repeated extra-marital affairs, finds himself back in the pulpit today and tomorrow at “Leave A Mark Church” in Columbus, Ohio. Continue reading →

The megachurch model is unsustainable

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“The nature of [the Christian] concept of the flesh is that we are bent toward being self-preserving and self-exalting. Somehow that bent gets fed and flourishes as we become more visible to an approving public.  Leading a very large church can be extremely difficult to do well, and almost dangerous from that standpoint.”

(Brian Sanders – Dallas News)   This summer, one of the nation’s largest and most influential megachurches suffered the loss of its senior leader and entire governing board, an event that has escalated a conversation about whether the megachurch model is sustainable. Continue reading →

Bethel & Ben Fitzgerald need to be held accountable as occultists continue to establish deep connections with Bethel & Awakening Conferences

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“In our ongoing investigations into Christalignment we also found that they plagiarised/stole the work of others. When Bethel defended Christalignment, they stated that the group existed as ‘disguised outreach’ for New Age events. However, Christalignment make no attempt to ‘disguise’ their true occult identity at churches and ‘Sexpos’ … clearly proving that Ben Fitzgerald, Bethel and Christalignment are prepared to lie in order to silence any criticism.”

(Churchwatch Central) Towards the end of last year Bethel Church Redding, California attempted to distance themselves from a group in Australia who practice and promote witchcraft. This particular group engaged in New Age and occultic practices such as tarot card readings, stone readings, rain/spirit dancing, connecting to energies/heavens/angels/warrior spirits and practicing henna tattooing. (CWC thoroughly established that this group practices tarot card reading and occultic henna art.) Continue reading →

Vatican Interreligious Dialogue Council Sends ‘Prayerful Good Wishes’ to Hindus for Pagan Festival Diwali

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“Diwali is an ancient festival originating in India, and is considered the largest shopping season in the Hindu religion. In addition to hanging lights and sharing legends and mythological stories about battles between good and evil, Hindus offer prayers to one of more of their deities—most commonly Lakshmi, the “goddess of wealth” and spouse of the myth god Vishnu.”

(Heather Clark – Christian News)  The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue recently sent greetings and “prayerful good wishes” to Hindus for Diwali, a festival in which adherents pray to various pagan gods and goddesses to seek a blessing of prosperity and wisdom for the new year. Continue reading →

Hillsong Christmas Musical Trailer Depicts Jesus Born in a Bar

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The London Hillsong 2018 lavish “Christmas” production is completely beyond the pale. Once again Hillsong demonstrates what Christmas is about for the worldly Christian — being entertained!  Holy Spirit-filled (authentic) Christians will find this production not to their liking. In fact, believers will be deeply offended by Hillsong’s “burlesque-type show” that has Joseph, Mary and the Christ child in a noisy nightclub atmosphere instead of a peaceful stable. JD Hall of Pulpit & Pen has the story that includes video trailers of Hillsong’s appalling production: Continue reading →

A Debt of Love

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.  Romans 13:8

Have you ever struggled to obey the Ten Commandments? Have you found it difficult to face up to obeying these demands that you shall not murder or lie or steal or commit adultery? Well, Paul says it is really simple. All you have to do is love. Act in love toward people and you won’t hurt them. The solution to all the problems we struggle with is this one thing. Have you ever thought of what would happen in this world if people could be taught how to love — and then they did it?

The first result that occurs to me is that all the impending divorces would be happily resolved. Couples ready to split up because love has left their marriage could go back together and learn how to work it out. … View article →

Beware of the leader who wants to ‘rethink’ what the Bible says

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“Beware of the leader who wants to “rethink” what the Bible says or how we apply the Bible to these current situations and contexts. We must reaffirm the truth of the past. We must reaffirm orthodox and historic theology and biblical understanding. But we must never rethink the Bible’s teaching.”

(Stephen Nichols – Ligonier Ministries)  From “3 Lines in the Sand.”   At the turn of the twentieth century, the sciences supposedly knew better than the Bible. Now, the social sciences supposedly know better than the Bible. And we are seeing this new world-view presented artfully and entertainingly through a barrage of media and in the halls of the academy. A casual watcher and listener will be exposed to countless gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals, acts, and ideas—and all without ever leaving mainstream media outlets. These are the times we live in (see TheStateofTheology.com). Continue reading →

Lysa TerKeurst Promotes Prosperity Gospel in Latest Book

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“Countless Christians live with overwhelming discouragement in their spiritual walk because they are told they should be victorious now, that things would go better for them if they had more faith, that even if trials come, they will have peace if they simply TRUST GOD.” 

(Jodie Jensen – Pulpit & Pen)  A new book was released this week by Lysa TerKeurst, and I want to earnestly caution believing friends against running out to get it or hopping on Amazon to order it. She is an exuberant writer and speaker and has experienced great triumph over intense difficulties in her life, but these things alone do not make her a sound Biblical teacher, and that should be our top priority when we are studying the Word of God. Continue reading →

New study suggests the Catholic priest abuse scandal isn’t about pedophilia but about rampant homosexuality

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“The network of “gay” priests and Catholic authorities goes all the way to the Vatican, according to several sources. It’s known to some as the “Lavender Mafia.” High-ranking Vatican emissary archbishop Carlo Vigano has even accused the pope himself in the cover-up.”

(Steve Jordahl – OneNewsNow)  The Ruth Institute pulled the numbers together from several agencies that have been tracking the scandal, as well as from statistics gathered by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the detailed 1,100-page report issued by the Pennsylvania attorney general. The study shows: Continue reading →

God and Government

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching ∙

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Romans 13:1

When Paul refers to governing authorities, he uses a phrase that can best be translated the powers that be. He is not just talking about heads of state; he is talking about all levels of authority, all the way down to the local police. He tells us that the thing we must think about these governmental offices is that they are, in some way, brought into being by God himself.

I often hear people ask, Which form of government is the best? Which is the one God wants us to have?We Americans would love to think that democracy obviously is the most God-honored form of government. But I don’t think you can establish that from the Scriptures. In fact, the Scriptures reflect various forms of government. So when you ask, Which government is the best kind? Is it a monarchy? An oligarchy? Is it a republic? A democracy?  … View article →

Blasphemy: ‘Gay Christian’ Says Jesus is Promiscuous and Polyamorous

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Brian G. Murphy teaches extreme blasphemy. 

“This is the heresy of theoerosism, which essentially amounts to romantic vibes for Jesus. That’s not the type of love with which he loves us. He’s not your boyfriend. His love is not reckless or romantic. In fact, Jesus doesn’t love us “amorously” and so to argue Jesus is polyamorous, is logic that does not follow.”

WATCH THE VIDEO ON THE SITE

(JD Hall – Pulpit & Pen) Warning: The following article contains a description of extreme blasphemy. It also has offensive language. We only write about this with fear and trembling, so as to lift it to scorn and contend against it. Continue reading →

Céline Dion Stars In Bizarre Ad To Launch Her Gender-Neutral Clothing Line

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“CELINUNUNU liberates children from the traditional roles of boy/girl, and enables younger people to grow on values of equality with the freedom to strengthen their own power of personality based on mutual respect.”

WATCH THE VIDEO ON THE SITE

(Amanda Prestigiacomo – Daily Wire)  On Tuesday, superstar Céline Dion released a bizarre video advertisement to launch her new line of gender-neutral children’s clothing, called CELINUNUNU, in partnership with Nununu. Continue reading →

Let us devote ourselves to running the race God has set before us

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

1 To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens! 2 Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, As the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, So our eyes look to the Lord our God, Until He is gracious to us. 3 Be gracious to us, O Lord, be gracious to us, For we are greatly filled with contempt. 4 Our soul is greatly filled With the scoffing of those who are at ease, And with the contempt of the proud. Psalms 123 (NASB) 

The vast majority of people on planet Earth want nothing to do with the real Jesus. Many love and hold dear another Jesus, but he is one made up by people who don’t know the one who is real. Tragically, the numbers of professing Christians are growing continually who are also following another Jesus who does not resemble in the least the one found in Sacred Scripture. Those who hold dear the real Jesus are those who are entirely reliant upon the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Undoubtedly there are baby Christians who are not spiritually mature and whose faith is not strong. … View article →

The Present American Revolution

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Almost everything we have seen in just the last three months — the Kavanaugh chaos, the “caravan,” the ongoing Mueller octopus, recounting election results until they are deemed “correct,” the Beto and Gillum neo-socialism craziness, the swarming of a Fox News anchor’s home, driving public officials out of restaurants, the media circus at presidential press conferences — are symptoms of revolutionary America.

(Victor Davis Hanson – National Review)  The revolution of 1776 sought to turn a colony of Great Britain into a new independent republic based on constitutionally protected freedom. It succeeded with the creation of the United States. Continue reading →

Not The Babylon Bee: Christian At UC-Berkeley Harassed, Denounced For Saying There Are Two Sexes

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Activists are trying to destroy a lone Christian student who dared speak out in favor of a Trump administration proposal to define sex according to biological realities.

(Brad Polumbo – The Federalist)   When news leaked in late October that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services was considering a move to once again define sex according to biological realities, it set off a political firestorm and raucous debate about transgender issues. Mainstream media outrage over the issue has now mostly subsided, but on many liberal college campuses, outrage is still in full swing. Continue reading →

Register Now: ‘God’s Voice Conference’ to Counter Pro-LGBT ‘Revoice Conference.’

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“The goal of who is speaking and how it is constructed is to not just to make it an opposition to Revoice but to counter it with God’s voice and Gospel transformation. The Gospel element of all of this is most important. 

(Pulpit & Pen)  An upcoming conference hopes to provide an alternative to the “Queer Christian” Revoice Conference. In opposition to the hopeless views propagated at this year’s Revoice Conference, which was promoted by officials in two of America’s most conservative denominations, the Presbyterian Church of America and Southern Baptist Convention, the God’s Voice Conference will promote a Gospel that can fully save and sanctify sinners, transforming them and making them like Jesus. This conference will be held on February 22 and 23 at First Moore Baptist Church in Moore, Oklahoma. Continue reading →

The Valley of Humiliation and dealing with discouragement

Posted by ∙ ∙ In Devotion/Teaching

23 Yet the chief cupbearer did not remember Joseph, but forgot him. Genesis 40:23 (NASB) 

My natural tendency is to heartily participate in self-pity, outrage, and unforgiveness thereby opening doors in my heart that Satan enters causing me to become discouraged. When this happens to me, I find that my circumstances drive me to become very negative and impatient. I suppose that this is one of my besetting sins which clings closely to me ready to cut in on me causing me to drop out of the race God has set before me to run with endurance. (Hebrews 12:1-2) My sense of joy that strengthens me as I run this race comes from looking unto Jesus. My focus has dropped from Him to me and my circumstances. When this happens the slide into self-absorption is very quick. I suddenly find myself in this ugly spiritually flat mood whose fuel seems to be anger that sometimes results in outrage.  View article →

72 percent say media ‘dividing Americans,’ spreading ‘hate’

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Overall, 72 percent said “the mainstream media has played a major role in dividing Americans along racial, gender and political lines. This has led to a spread of hate and misunderstanding among some people.”

(Paul Bedard – Washington Examiner)  Nearly three-quarters of the country believes that the media is “dividing Americans” along political, racial, and gender lines, a stunning condemnation of the press, according to a new national survey.

What’s more, the Zogby Analytics poll provided to Secrets said that the media bias is sparking hate and misunderstanding. Continue reading →

Megachurch pastor tells church to stop going to yoga, because of its ‘demonic roots’

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Not surprisingly, the pastor who rightly stated that yoga has demonic roots, therefore it shouldn’t be practiced by Christians has been accused of being “ignorant,” “divisive” and inciting “hate speech.” Reporter Alissa Zhu interviewed a “Christian yogi” (an oxymoron if ever there was one) who claims the practice has brought him closer to God, in spite of the fact that participating in any sort of pagan practice is expressly forbidden by the God of the Bible. Zhu also interviewed Stephanie Wubbena who teaches goat yoga on a farm. Wubbena said her main concern was that the pastor’s message is “going after small businesses.”

After reading the story, return to CRN and discover why the pastor felt it was necessary to warn his congregants that practicing yoga can be spiritually harmful to Christians in a piece entitled Going Against God “Just for Fun.”

Now to Alissa Zhu’s story over at Springfield News-Leader. She writes: Continue reading →