(Ryan T. Anderson – Public Discourse) People say that we live in a postmodern age that has rejected metaphysics. That’s not quite true. We live in a postmodern age that promotes an alternative metaphysics. As I explain in When Harry Became Sally, at the heart of the transgender moment are radical ideas about the human person—in particular, that people are what they claim to be, regardless of contrary evidence. A transgender boy is a boy, not merely a girl who identifies as a boy. It’s understandable why activists make these claims. An argument about transgender identities will be much more persuasive if it concerns who someone is, not merely how someone identifies. And so the rhetoric of the transgender moment drips with ontological assertions: people are the gender they prefer to be. That’s the claim.
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Bermuda Revokes Same-Sex-Marriage Rights, In A World First
(Camila Domonoske – NPR) Less than a year after legalizing same-sex marriage, Bermuda is reversing course, implementing a law that says same-sex couples can enter domestic partnerships but not marry.
The British territory is believed to be the first jurisdiction in the world to reverse course on same-sex marriage after permitting it, The Guardian writes.
In May 2017, Bermuda’s Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage. Within months, the island’s legislature passed a bill overturning that court decision, which was signed into law on Wednesday, The Associated Press reports:
Univ. cancels Ken Ham after LGBT group ‘put up a fuss’
(Baptist Press) Christian apologist and creationist Ken Ham has been dropped from the speaking lineup of a public university after a campus LGBT group complained to event organizers, Ham said in a Feb. 6 press release.
Ham was to speak March 5 at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond on “Genesis and the State of the Culture,” in an event organized by the UCO Student Association (UCOSA). But UCOSA cancelled the event when a pro-LGBT group objected, said Ham, founder of the Answers in Genesis (AiG) apologetics ministry that built the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter in Kentucky.
Are you easy prey for false prophets?
Note from Holy Pivec of Spirit of Error:
The following post was first published on my blog on August 23, 2013. With the rise of men and women calling themselves prophets, many people need to hear its warning more than ever.
The Bible is clear: false prophets are wolves that devour unsuspecting sheep.
Jesus said:
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.” (Matthew 7:15) Continue reading
Evangelical Leftists Beg Trump to Help Illegal Aliens
(Pulpit & Pen News) “Beth Moore, Russell Moore, Matt Chandler, Ed Stetzer, Jen Hatmaker…these are not conservative people. They range from Marxist-leaning New Calvinists to the desperate housewife contingent of feminist, pro-gay lady preachers.”
Illegal immigration has become the most popular issue to talk about among evangelicals seeking to build a bridge between evangelicalism and America’s left. Conceding on the culture wars of abortion and gay marriage, these evangelical leaders can’t be found in the thick of it on those important religious issues, but are at the front of the protest line when it comes to supporting illegal immigration. It’s a winning issue, as George Soros and his Evangelical Immigration Table have successfully convinced certain evangelicals that it’s their job to promote lawlessness. It’s a popular and easy public relations win, and evangelical leftists know it. Continue reading
Therefore put to death what is earthly in you which is idolatry
13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:13 (NKJV)
Compromise is the order of the day. When God’s Word is forsaken and replaced with the subjectivity of Man’s wisdom then what do you expect? When so-called “Evangelical leaders” can ignore what Sacred Scripture says very clearly about Homosexuality being a sin just like murder and that no practicing homosexual will inherit the Kingdom of God and still call what they teach “Christianity” well then what we must understand is that what we are dealing with are people who want to be included as practicing Christians while remaining unrepentant of their sins. …
The One Coming
A shoot will come from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:1-2)
It is not difficult for us to see that this is a clear prediction of the Lord Jesus. Here in these opening verses is a hint that the Messiah will appear in history in a very obscure way. That is suggested by this word, A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse.
Like a great tree that has been cut down, the ancestry of Jesus represented in David and his father Jesse has been reduced to obscurity and insignificance. … Continue reading on Ray Stedman Daily Devotions
Meditation and the Art of Consciousness Hacking
Pam Frost reports on a very scary movement dubbed “enlightenment engineering” that everyone, especially Christians, should be made aware of. According to Frost, these people are experimenting with new technology to accelerate and enhance the development of meditative consciousness. The scientific technology of consciousness is the brain child of Mikey Siegel, founder of Consciousness Hacking. You’ll learn about Siegel in Frost’s post. Here’s a glimpse of the man behind the screen:
By suspending the judgment of his normally functioning mind and abandoning himself to mental passivity, Siegel experienced the “enlightenment” of a higher state of transcendent consciousness in which neither “good” nor “bad” exists. According to Hinduism, the material world and the realm of distinctions are only an illusion (maya). The goal of meditation is to transcend these illusions until the soul (atman) is realized as god (brahman). (Bold added)
Cardinal Marx, Papal Adviser: Catholic Priests May Bless Homosexual Couples
(CNSNews) In contradiction of the Catholic Church’s 2,000-year-old teaching on marriage and sexual morality, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, head of the German Bishops’ Conference and one of Pope Francis’ senior advisers, said it is okay for Catholic priests to encourage homosexual couples and to bless them in some form of liturgical or church ceremony.
The influential cardinal made his remarks on the Bavarian State Broadcasting radio service on Feb. 3, reported the Catholic News Agency and other media outlets. His statements apparently have not been challenged by Pope Francis or by other bishops.
FBI lovers’ latest text messages: Obama ‘wants to know everything’
(Fox News) Newly revealed text messages between FBI paramours Peter Strzok and Lisa Page include an exchange about preparing talking points for then-FBI Director James Comey to give to President Obama, who wanted “to know everything we’re doing.”
The message, from Page to Strzok, was among thousands of texts between the lovers reviewed by Fox News. The pair both worked at one point for Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe of alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Page wrote to Strzok on Sept. 2, 2016, about prepping Comey because “potus wants to know everything we’re doing.” According to a newly released Senate report, this text raises questions about Obama’s personal involvement in the Clinton email investigation.
Showdown looms over SBC and Calvinism
The following news story from One News Now is posted for informational and research purposes and not as an endorsement of the source.
A longtime Southern Baptist leader warns there is a theological civil war brewing over the influence of Calvinist leaders within the denomination.
Richard Land, the former head of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, says he supports Ken Hemphill to lead the SBC as president in order to preserve the gospel message and to defend the role of evangelism.
Have you left your first love?
1 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “I remember you,
The kindness of your youth, The love of your betrothal, When you went after Me in the wilderness, In a land not sown. 3 Israel was holiness to the Lord, The firstfruits of His increase.
All that devour him will offend; Disaster will come upon them,” says the Lord.’ ” Jeremiah 2:1-3 (NKJV)
Christian, think back to those early days of your walk with the Lord. Your entire value system seemed to be turned upside-down. You loved God and your devotion to your Saviour was the most important thing in your life. Old sins had no power over you. You were full of joy and wanted only to serve the Lord Jesus with your all. At the same time, you also discovered that your relationships changed. You could love others with a deeper and more sincere love that was active and compassionate. Would this describe your relationship with the Lord Jesus and all those around you today?
Judge rules in favor of Tastries owner in discrimination case
(Kern Golden Empire) A Kern County judge ruled in favor of Cathy Miller, owner of Tastries Bakery, Monday in an ongoing dispute over refusing to bake a cake for a same-sex couple.
The court ruled the state could not force Miller to bake a cake that would directly go against her beliefs.
One of the factors in the case, the judge ruled, was that the cake had not been baked for the couple and was not on sale.
If Miller had refused to sell the couple a cake on display then the act would be discriminatory.
The Power of De-Conversion Stories: How Jen Hatmaker is Trying to Change Minds About the Bible
Fans of Jen Hatmaker may not realize that she follows the same basic playbook used by former megachurch pastor and Oprah Winfrey pal Rob Bell and other progressive “Christians.” According to Michael J. Kruger, professor of Reformed Theological Seminary, the details may be different, but the overall point is the same. Berean Research has posted numerous articles to show that even though they profess to be evangelicals, both Jen and her husband Brandon are firmly ensconced in the Religious Left. In other words, they’re progressives. As you’re about to see, Jen rejects the inerrancy of Scripture. A few years ago the Hatmakers came out in support of the LGBTQ community and in doing so the couple made it clear that they deny the biblical teaching on marriage, sexuality and family.
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Meditation does not make you a better person, study finds
(Francesca Marshall – The Telegraph) Meditation does not make you a better person according to a new study despite widespread claims that meditation can make you calmer and more compassionate towards other people.
Researchers have found that despite popular beliefs that meditation can make people more compassionate and less aggressive the evidence for this is limited.
The research by scientists at Coventry University in the UK, Massey University in New Zealand, and Radboud University in the Netherlands, reviewed 22 studies involving 1685 people to investigate the effect of various types of meditation. Continue reading
Enjoying Christ’s fullness as mine
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ”
16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. John 1:14-16 (NKJV)
There is a certain hysteria currently amongst many of our 21st Century Puritans. While I gladly count myself as a Puritan, I also know that our enemy desires to shackle and nullify our witness and divert our focus by feeding our heightened perceptions as to what is godly and what is false with misleading and derogatory information that cause us to turn on one another. Having experienced this against my own ministry since its inception I can say that it is very frustrating and eye opening.
Donor Alert: Pro-Family Cash Is Routed to LGBT Groups Instead
(LifeZette) “Alliance Defending Freedom alleged recently that Georgetown, the country’s oldest Catholic and Jesuit university, not only misappropriated donations intended for the pro-family student organization Love Saxa, but illegally deposited those funds into the accounts of various LGBT groups on campus instead.”
One by one, like falling dominoes, Catholic universities nationwide seem to be shedding their Christian ethos and abandoning their religious teachings.
They’re embracing, instead, ever-expanding social justice curricula and worldviews that prioritize race, class, gender, and sexual orientation — concepts that serve to divide rather than unite people.
If You Can’t Heal ‘Em, Beat ‘Em?
(Costi Hinn – Defining Deception) Why in the world does church history matter? That’s a question more Christians should be able to answer – and a highly important one at that.
In his phenomenal work, Why Church History Matters, Robert F. Rea defines history as “the study of the past in order to understand the present and improve the future.”[1] History teaches us valuable lessons about the good, the bad, and the ugly. It teaches us about the nature of the way things have been and how they came to be. These are certainly lessons we do well to learn because they remind us that even the best of men are still men at best. Furthermore, lessons from history provide us with the motivation to change the future, even when it’s painful to face the facts. Continue reading
Pope Francis is giving in to the Chinese Communist Party
(Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian – Washington Post) Such a capitulation of spiritual authority would damage the Catholic Church in China for years to come. How do we know? Because this very scenario has played out before — in communist Hungary.
The Vatican appears to be seeking a rapprochement with China, almost 70 years after Beijing broke ties. But the Catholic Church has little to gain and much to lose from mending ties with the Communist Party-ruled country. And Pope Francis should be under no illusions: Any agreement the two sides may strike will be entirely on Beijing’s terms.
Whoever does not love abides in death
11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, 12 not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.
13 Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. 1 John 3:11-15 (NKJV)
At least once every few weeks I encounter a “brother” or “sister” in the Lord whose “ministry” seems to be to generate as much hatred as possible within the visible Church for some other Christian or group of Christians. …
Come soon Lord Jesus!
11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. Revelation 3:11 (NKJV)
3 knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, 4 and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:3-4 (NKJV)
It is one thing to say, “Come soon Lord Jesus!” and quite another thing to live as if you mean it. There are even some today who are of the “progressive” mindset that teach we should live this life with our focus on the here and now rather than eternity. Why? This is to create a better world or make this world a better place. …
16 Bombshells In the Nunes Memo the Media Does Not Want You to Know About
(John Nolte – Breitbart) In its partisan zeal to protect the ongoing witch hunt against President Trump, our Nixonian media went into hyper-drive last week to ensure that the unethical and un-American behavior of President Obama’s FBI and Justice Department remained covered up from the public.
After this cynical effort failed with the release of the Nunes memo Friday, the media quickly switched tactics and is now working feverishly to muddy the waters about the horror show revealed in the memo. Continue reading
SBC Voices Claims Russell Moore is a Conservative (lol)
(Pulpit & Pen News) That’s the response that is due the recent SBC Echoes post defending the former Democratic Staffer, animal rights activist, Martin Luther King celebrator, Cultural Marxist, illegal immigrant amnesty-supporter and George Soros partner, Russell Moore. In polemics there’s a term called “website orthodox,” and it’s a term with which anyone capable of entry-level discernment should be familiar. Website orthodox refers to someone who has an orthodox statement of faith hyperlinked on their website, to which they can point and deflect from their criticism. For example, IHOP has a perfectly orthodox statement of faith on their website, but in reality, they’re a circus cult and freakshow sub-Christian sect.
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Amputating Discernment Ministry from the Body of Christ
Photo credit: 8:28 Ministries
“If there were ever a dire need for discernment ministry done right and biblically, it’s now,” says Bible study author, speaker and blogger Michelle Lesley. So why do so many Christians rail against discernment ministries? According to Michelle, “One of the most common arguments I hear against discernment ministry is that it’s the job of the pastor, not discernment ministries, to teach discernment. And with that statement, I could not more heartily agree! Discernment work is half of a pastor’s job description.” Right, but “when was the last time you heard a pastor rebuke someone who contradicts sound doctrine? Or call a false teacher by name? Or teach about a currently popular false doctrine and warn against it?” The answer is, not very often, if ever. Continue reading
How Can We Change?
Come now, let us settle the matter, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. (Isaiah 1:18-20)
When we read Isaiah 1, there is a problem immediately evident. God’s analysis of the human race is that we are fundamentally tainted with self-centeredness so that we do not want to do good. We only want to minister to our own needs and our own lives. As a solution, God says in v. 16, Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good.
But, the question arises, how can evil people do good things? Continue reading Rey Stedman Daily Devotions