Posts tagged with "religion"
Monday, 28. September 2009, 00:07:00
religion, christian, media, Australia
...
I just noticed that there is a very strange reluctance at the ABC. It might have been just a one-off and I might be reading too much into things and leaping to conclusions but... On the AM programme this morning there was an item about the return of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative party with an improved margin. The margin was so great that she was able to dump her main coalition partner, which was an unlikely and difficult allliance, and take on another conservative party in a new coalition.
The former coalition partner was named several times in the article- the Social Democratic Party- but Merkel's party remained nameless, except for a brief mention by the European correspondent. It was described as conservative, pro-business, liberal, right-of-centre, but the name was all but ignored. What is this word that dare not be spoken? Christian Democratic Party of course!
So maybe I'm just a bit too prone to conspiracy theories 
I might keep an ear out for other reports of political incorrectness but I suspect that some people in the media might just be reluctant to mention the C word!
The other day Margaret noticed an item on a children's educational programme, Behind The News, also broadcast by the ABC. The item was about Islam which was described as one of Australia's biggest religions. She was a little surprised by this so paid some attention. Five minutes into the programme it mentioned the real facts. Islam is the third biggest religion behind Christianity 76% and Buddhism 2% and then Islam 1%. So Islam accounts for just 1% of the population but is described as "one of the biggest religions" in the country.
Just a little bit of ABC spin there.
Monday, 20. July 2009, 23:57:29
religion, Iran, islam
Religion has a way of corrupting our best intentions and leading us away from God rather than towards Him. The reason for this is religion is always about external behaviour not about motivations or heart level transformation.
While anybody can change their external behaviour to comply with a set of rules, it is only God's grace revealed to us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that can radically transform our hearts and kill our love of evil.
It doesn't matter whether the religion is Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism or nominal Christianity (by which I mean taking on the form of the faith in Christ without walking in relationship with Him), religion will always make a person more evil not less.
And so to Iran, where the brutality of the religious regime is making even its young thugs recoil.
From Melanie Phillips:
And this is why they want to overthrow it.
The Jerusalem Post reported an interview with a serving member of the paramilitary Basiji militia, who had himself been detained for the ‘crime' of having set free two Iranian teenagers, a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl, who had been arrested during the disturbances. What was shocking, however, was his description of his previous activities as a Basiji thug:
He said he had been a highly regarded member of the force, and had so ‘impressed my superiors’ that, at 18, ‘I was given the 'honour' to temporarily marry young girls before they were sentenced to death.’ In the Islamic Republic it is illegal to execute a young woman, regardless of her crime, if she is a virgin, he explained. Therefore a ‘wedding’ ceremony is conducted the night before the execution: The young girl is forced to have sexual intercourse with a prison guard - essentially raped by her ‘husband.’
‘I regret that, even though the marriages were legal,’ he said. Why the regret, if the marriages were ‘legal?’ ‘Because,’ he went on, ‘I could tell that the girls were more afraid of their 'wedding' night than of the execution that awaited them in the morning. And they would always fight back, so we would have to put sleeping pills in their food. By morning the girls would have an empty expression; it seemed like they were ready or wanted to die.’
These people have looked to the west to help deliver them from this tyranny – and the west has looked the other way.
Do you see the evil religion launches? The religious law says that virgins cannot be executed, so to allow these women to be executed they need to be legally raped and this is done by means of a false wedding which is actually a perversion of marriage. All of this to allow a form of religion to justify barbarity.
It's not only Islam that does this of course. Christianity has had its fair share of evil practices perpetrated by evil people who used the power of an institution to condone their deeds and undermine the grace of God.
The full article is here:
Wednesday, 15. July 2009, 03:09:46
religion, christian, islam
What would happen if somebody in an officially Muslim ocuntry, say Malaysia, were to turn up to a mosque and do something really horrible, say spit on the Koran?
From au.christiantoday.com
Two Malaysian Muslim Journalists Spark Anger With Church Article
By: Derick Ho
Christian Post Asia Correspondent
Malaysian authorities said Tuesday they are investigating complaints against an Islamic magazine that reported two Muslim journalists pretended to be Catholic and took Holy Communion during Mass to do research for an article.
Churchgoers, Joachim Xavier and Sudhagaran Stanley, filed a police report last week accusing the monthly ‘Al Islam’ magazine of desecrating the Christian practice of Holy Communion in an article written by two journalists who described how they tasted the wafer, representing the body of Jesus, and spat it out to take a photo of it, Al Arabiya New Channel reported.
The two journalists went undercover and pretended to be Christians to infiltrate a church they claimed was converting Muslims into Christians.
However, they wrote in their published article “Al Islam's investigation in church: Finding the truth behind youths' apostasy" that they found no proof of the church offering money to Muslim youths to convert to Christianity.
But the journalist duo who took the ‘Holy communion’ had criticized parts of the ceremony and wrote Christians strayed from the right path.
"Entering these premises with the intention to spy, and worse, to violate the sanctity of the worship only serves to incite anger and hatred that could lead to potentially dangerous consequences that would tear this country apart," Xavier and Stanley said in a statement.
Rev. Lawrence Andrew, the editor of the Herald, the Catholic Church’s main publication in Malaysia, said the men had "insulted the Christians" through their actions.
"For us, this is a very holy matter," Andrew told The Associated Press (AP). "They have shown disregard, disrespect. ... So we are very upset about this."
Norshamsinor Baharin, the assistant editor of Al-Islam, said the magazine did not want to make any statement for now. Al-Islam writes about Islamic teachings and news.
Church officials would not forbid non-Christians from attending Mass, but they cannot take Communion, Andrew told AP, adding that Catholics were also unhappy that the men had entered the church under false pretenses.
The magazine article indicated the men had spat out the Communion wafer because they took a photograph of it partially bitten.
Police federal crime investigations head Mohamad Bakri Zinin told Associated Press that the officials were investigating whether the two men had caused religious disharmony - a crime that carries a prison sentence of up to five years.
Christian, Buddhist and Hindu minorities - who comprise about one-third of Malaysia's population - often say their constitutional right to practice religion freely has come under threat from Muslim-dominated authorities. The government denies any discrimination.
Religious disputes include a court battle between the Catholic church and the government over a 2007 order banning non-Muslims from translating God as "Allah" in their literature. The government says its use would confuse Muslims, but Christians say the ban is unconstitutional. Christians have been fighting in the highest court of the country since 2007 to revert the case.
Article
Monday, 16. March 2009, 22:30:43
religion, society
Before we get too outraged about "sacred days" being trampled on, perhaps we need to reflect on this: If we were serious aobut proclaiming the gospel there would be little demand for worship at the TAB or the shops.And if we demand our rights to special treatment of Christian days in our multi-cultural society how long will it be before Muslims demand equal rights?I suspect that the media and politicians will be more alarmed than genuine christians, by and large. I'm just sad that we are losing the idea of sabbath, a common day when the whole community rests and reflects on life.From the ABC:Outrage as TABs open for Good Friday Religious groups are furious Tabcorp has decided to open for gambling on Good Friday for the first time.The decision to allow punters to place bets at agencies and hotels comes as New South Wales authorities consider an application by big retailers to open on Easter Sunday. David Jones, Myer and Kmart argue religion's role in society has diminished, but religious and charity groups say the days are two of the last sacred holidays left on the calendar. Father Brian Lucas, from the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, says Tabcorp's decision shows nothing is more sacred than profit for some. "One wonders why this particular day, of all the days people are able to trade, is so significant to the traders," he said. The head of problem gambling services at the Salvation Army, Gerard Burn, says religious holidays should be protected from trading. "These things ought to be kept sacrosanct within our community," he said. "Once we begin to water down these days that are significant days on the Christian calendar, then we start to see gambling becomes, in a sense, the new religion."
Outrage as TABs open for Good Friday - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
Sunday, 9. November 2008, 22:53:03
religion, church
Christians brawling in one of the major shrines in Jerusalem is nothing new, but it shows how deeply religion holds in its thrall those who claim to follow Jesus.
From the ABC:
Christians in mass brawl at historic church
Greek Orthodox and Armenian worshippers have traded blows in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where Christian denominations jealously protect their hold over areas of the traditional site of Jesus' crucifixion.
Israeli police moved into the shrine, which faithful also believe contains the tomb of Jesus, to restore order and said they arrested two clerics.
Dozens of worshippers, dressed in the vestments of the Greek Orthodox and Armenian denominations, traded kicks and punches, knocking down tapestries and toppling decorations at the site in Arab East Jerusalem.
The brawl erupted during the Feast of the Cross, a ceremony in which the Armenian community commemorates what it believes was the fourth century discovery of the cross upon which Jesus was crucified.
Fights are not uncommon in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre among the representatives of Christian denominations who are responsible for maintaining its different chambers.
Article
Wednesday, 22. October 2008, 10:00:46
repentance, salvation, religion
“In the religious approach, repentance separates you from the source of your power and your hope and your confidence - because thats a good record.
But in the gospel, repentance reconnects you to the source of your power and your confidence and your joy. Why? Because the source of your self image, the source of your power, the source of your confidence is not your record, but his record. Not what you have done, but what he has done.”
- Tim Keller, “He came to himself” (message given at Redeemer Presbyterian Church)
Thursday, 21. August 2008, 09:50:21
religion, church, society
Just how much can you believe that comes out of the Hillsong/ AOG megaplex these days?
Really, I try to be open, respectful and all of that stuff, but how often do they allow people to get sucked in by the celbrity church, cult-hero-mega pastor culture?
I stumbled across this article on ninemsn today:
Pop star pastor lied about cancer
By Shaun Davies, ninemsn
A pastor who claimed terminal cancer inspired him to write a hit evangelical pop song has been exposed as a fraud.
Michael Guglielmucci told worshippers, friends and his own family that he was likely to die from the disease.
He claimed his hit song "Healer", which was included on mega-church Hillsong's latest album, came to him as a "gift from God" on the day the diagnosis was revealed.
It propelled Mr Guglielmucci, formerly a pastor with Melbourne-based church Planetshakers, to the forefront of Australia's Christian youth movement.
But the story was completely made up.
A statement from Australian Christian Churches vice president Alun Davies said Mr Guglielmucci, now living in Adelaide, had admitted to fabricating his cancer story.
"Representatives of the National Executive for the Australian Christian Churches recently met with Michael Guglielmucci," Mr Davies said.
"At this meeting, he read a statement indicating that his claim to have cancer was untrue.
"His credential with the Australian Christian Churches was immediately suspended."
An abundance of material documenting Mr Guglielmucci's falsified illness is available on the internet.
In one Hillsong video, subtitled in Spanish and posted to YouTube, the pastor described his made-up cancer diagnosis in meticulous detail.
"I went to the hospital expecting to have some tests and got the news that I had cancer, and quite an aggressive form of cancer," he said.
"I walked into my studio at home and for some reason pressed record, which was a good thing ... I just sat at a piano and began to worship.
"I didn't, like, sit down and write the verses and the chorus, I just sang that song from the start to the finish.
"I just realised that God had given me an incredible gift and I knew that was going to be my strength."
A Facebook group entitled "I continue to love and support Michael Guglielmucci" has been set up, with many young Christians calling for the pastor to be forgiven.
But comments attached to YouTube videos have been less kind.
"Should this still be on [here]? Can someone delete it? Mike never had cancer, it's all a lie he made up. It's embarrassing and sad to watch," read one comment.
In an e-mail sent to Hillsong members yesterday, the church's general manager George Aghajanian said the news was even a shock to Mr Guglielmucci's own family.
The suspended pastor was seeking professional help, the e-mail said.
Planetshakers spokesman Darryn Keneally said his church was "devastated by the elaborate hoax".
He said Mr Guglielmucci would make reparations to anyone who gave him money because of his made-up sickness. "There were no fundraisers conducted however when Michael left the church, 18 months ago, a special offering was taken up in honor of his services to the church," he said.
"Planetshakers Church did not ask for any congregational financial support to be given to Michael and we have not given him any financial assistance since.
"We have asked that all money generated from the proceeds of his song Healer be donated to charity."
Article:
Friday, 15. August 2008, 01:07:08
revivalism, religion, church, Holy Spirit
Following the announcement this week that Todd Bentley has separated from his wife Shonna, "Charisma" editor J. Lee Grady raises some disturbing questions for the christian community.
Life After Lakeland: Sorting Out the Confusion
Todd Bentley's announcement that his marriage is ending has thrown our movement into a tailspin and questions need to be answered.
It was not supposed to end like this.
Evangelist Todd Bentley had heralded the Lakeland revival as the greatest Pentecostal outpouring since Azusa Street. From his stage in a gigantic tent in Florida, Bentley preached to thousands, bringing many of them to the stage for prayer. Many claimed to be healed of deafness, blindness, heart problems, depression and dozens of other conditions in the Lakeland services, which ran for more than 100 consecutive nights. Bentley announced confidently that dozens of people had been raised from the dead during the revival.
But this week, a few days after the Canadian preacher announced the end of his visits to Lakeland, he told his staff that his marriage is ending. Without blaming the pace of the revival for Bentley's personal problems, his board released a public statement saying that he and his wife, Shonnah, are separating. The news shocked Bentley's adoring fans and saddened those who have questioned his credibility since the Lakeland movement erupted in early April.
"Among those who jumped on the Lakeland bandwagon, discernment was discouraged. They were expected to swallow and follow. The message was clear: 'This is God. Don't question.'
I'm sad. I'm disappointed. And I'm angry. Here are few of my many, many questions about this fiasco:
Why did so many people flock to Lakeland from around the world to rally behind an evangelist who had serious credibility issues from the beginning?
To put it bluntly, we're just plain gullible.
From the first week of the Lakeland revival, many discerning Christians raised questions about Bentley's beliefs and practices. They felt uneasy when he said he talked to an angel in his hotel room. They sensed something amiss when he wore a T-shirt with a skeleton on it. They wondered why a man of God would cover himself with tattoos. They were horrified when they heard him describe how he tackled a man and knocked his tooth out during prayer.
But among those who jumped on the Lakeland bandwagon, discernment was discouraged. They were expected to swallow and follow. The message was clear: "This is God. Don't question. So before we could all say, "Sheeka Boomba" (as Bentley often prayed from his pulpit), many people went home, prayed for people and shoved them to the floor with reckless abandon, Bentley-style.
I blame this lack of discernment, partly, on raw zeal for God. We're spiritual hungry which can be a good thing. But sometimes, hungry people will eat anything.
Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study. Yet we are faced today with the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It's way past time for us to grow up.
Why didn't anyone in Lakeland denounce the favourable comments Bentley made about William Branham?
This one baffles me. Branham embraced horrible deception near the end of his ministry, before he died in 1965. He claimed that he was the reincarnation of Elijah and his strange doctrines are still embraced by a cult-like following today. When Bentley announced to the world that the same angel that ushered in the 1950s healing revival had come to Lakeland, the entire audience should have run for the exits.
Why didn't anyone correct this error from the pulpit? Godly leaders are supposed to protect the sheep from heresy, not spoon feed deception to them. Only God knows how far this poison travelled from Lakeland to take root elsewhere. May God forgive us for allowing His Word to be so flippantly contaminated.
A prominent Pentecostal evangelist called me this week after Bentley's news hit the fan. He said to me: "I'm now convinced that a large segment of the charismatic church will follow the anti-Christ when he shows up because they have no discernment.” Ouch. Hopefully we'll learn our lesson this time and apply the necessary caution when an impostor shows up.
Why did God TV tell people that "any criticism of Todd Bentley is demonic?
This ridiculous statement was actually made on one of God TV's pre-shows. In fact, the network's hosts also warned listeners that if they listened to criticism of Bentley, they could lose their healings.
This is cultic manipulation at its worst. The Bible tells us that the Bereans were noble believers because they studied the Scriptures daily "to see whether these things were so”(Acts 17:11, NASB). Yet in the case of Lakeland, honest intellectual inquiry was viewed as a sign of weakness. People were expected to jump first and then open their eyes.
Just because we believe in the power of the Holy Spirit does not mean we check our brains at the church door. We are commanded to test the spirits. Jesus wants us to love Him with our hearts and our minds.
Because of the Lakeland scandal, there may be large numbers of people who feel they've been burned by Bentley. Some may give up on church and join the growing ranks of bitter, disenfranchised Christians. Others may suffer total spiritual shipwreck. This could have been avoided if leaders had been more vocal about their objections and urged people to evaluate spiritual experiences through the filter of God's Word.
Why did a group of respected ministers lay hands on Bentley on June 23 and publicly ordain him? Did they know of his personal problems?
This controversial ceremony was organized by Peter Wagner, who felt that one of Bentley's greatest needs was proper spiritual covering. He asked California pastors Che Ahn and Bill Johnson, along with Canadian pastor John Arnott, to lay hands on Bentley and bring him under their care.
Bentley certainly needs such covering. No one in ministry today should be out on their own, living in isolation without checks, balances and wise counsel. It was commendable that Wagner reached out to Bentley and that Bentley acknowledged his need for spiritual fathers by agreeing to submit to the process. The question remains, however, whether it was wise to commend Bentley during a televised commissioning service that at times seemed more like a king's coronation.
In hindsight, we can all see that it would have been better to take Bentley into a back room and talk about his personal issues.
The Bible tells us that ordination of a minister is a sober responsibility. Paul wrote: "Do not lay hands upon anyone too hastily and thereby share responsibility for the sins of others”(1 Tim. 5:22). We might be tempted to rush the process, but the apostle warned against fast-tracking ordination and he said that those who commission a minister who is not ready for the job will bear some of the blame for his failures.
I trust that Wagner, Ahn, Johnson and Arnott didn't know of Bentley's problems before they ordained him. I am sure they are saddened by the events of this week and are reaching out to Bentley and his wife to promote healing and restoration. But I believe that they, along with Bentley and the owners of God TV, owe the body of Christ a forthright, public apology for thrusting Bentley's ministry into the spotlight prematurely. (Perhaps such an apology should be aired on God TV.)
Can anything good come out of this?
That depends on how people respond. If the men assigned to oversee Bentley offer loving but firm correction, and if Bentley responds humbly to the process by stepping out of ministry for a season of rehabilitation, we could witness a healthy case of church discipline play out the way it is supposed to. If all those who were so eager to promote Bentley now rush just as fast to repent for their errors in judgment, then the rest of us could breathe a huge sigh of relief and the credibility of our movement could be restored.
I still believe that God desires to visit our nation in supernatural power. I know He wants to heal multitudes, and I will continue praying for a healing revival to sweep across the United States. But we must contend for the genuine, not an imitation. True revival will be accompanied by brokenness, humility, reverence and repentance not the arrogance, showmanship and empty hype that often was on display in Lakeland.
We are weathering an unprecedented season of moral failure and spiritual compromise in our nation today. I urge everyone in the charismatic world to pray for Bentley; his wife, Shonnah; his three young children; Bentley's ministry staff; and the men and women who serve as his counsellors and advisers. Let's pray that God will turn this embarrassing debacle into an opportunity for miraculous restoration.
J. Lee Grady is editor of Charisma.
Thursday, 31. July 2008, 00:06:03
salvation, religion, society, islam
The trouble with religion is that it can only ever regulate the outward behaviour. To that extent the rules that it imposes to rein in human sinfulness become ever more nit-picky and bizarre, regulating behaviours that have nothing to do with the root problem.
This was the conundrum that the Pharisees wrestled with in Jesus' time and the Muslim Religious Police battle today. It is also the issue that in the West the various thought police such as "Equal Opportunity" and "Human Rights" tribunals fail to recognise.
The problem is with our heart not our words or our bodies or our pets.
Only Jesus can transform our broken hearts and heal the deep issues which lead us to put our own need for affirmation above the needs of others.
From the SMH
Saudi religious police ban pet cats and dogs
Saudi Arabia's religious police have banned selling cats and dogs or exercising them in public in the Saudi capital, because of men using them as a means of making passes at women, an official said.
Othman al-Othman, head of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice in Riyadh, known as the Muttawa, told the Saudi edition of al-Hayat daily the commission has started enforcing an old religious edict.
He said the commission was implementing a decision taken a month ago by the acting governor of the capital, Prince Sattam bin Abdul Aziz, adding it followed an old edict issued by the supreme council of Saudi scholars.
The reason behind reinforcing the edict now was a rising fashion among some men using pets in public "to make passes on women and disturb families," he said, without giving more details.
Othman said that the commission has instructed its offices in the capital to tell pet shops "to stop selling cats and dogs".
The 5000-strong religious police oversees the adherence to Wahabism - a strict version of Sunni Islam, which also forces women to cover from head to toe when in public, and bans them from driving.
AFP
Article:
Friday, 30. May 2008, 10:41:41
faith, religion
From Terry Sommerville
TESTING TESTING 1, 2, 3 Terry Somerville
...they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed;
Acts 17:11-12
Why Test?
When I became a Christian I was amazed how spiritually gullible I had been up till then. I had been following several "spirit guides", but it never occurred to me that they had been lying! I had believed what they said must be true because it was supernatural! I had accepted, without question, that they were the spirits of the dead helping me! How wrong I was. Thank Jesus He saved me!
Today I am alarmed that many hungry Christians fall prey to the same deception of the enemy. If it's supernatural it's accepted as genuine! For example, if a Christian has a powerful encounter with an angel we tend to believe in it without further examination. Or, if a sign occurs, we believe it must be God! Well, why should it be genuine? Who says it's God? The prophet? Why believe him? How do you know? What if it's "a lying spirit in the mouth of the prophets?" (a biblical possibility) What if it's "false sign" (a biblical possibility) What if an "apostle" made the story of their spiritual encounters up? Or, what if they are real stories, but it was an angel of light? (a biblical possibility) This is exactly the reason we need to test things.
The bible instructs us to test everything because real, supernatural spiritual deception is possible. You and I can be deceived.
Judge, Discern, Test, Prove
The word of God tells us to judge, discern, test and prove what we have heard or experienced, to see if it is of God.
Judge - The Greek word for "judge" is "krino" it means to condemn, punish:--avenge, conclude, condemn, damn, decree, determine, esteem, judge, go to (sue at the) law, ordain, call in question, sentence
Discern - Another word translated judge is "diakrino". It is sometimes translated as weigh or discern. Strongs says "to separate thoroughly, to discriminate, to differ(-ence), discern, doubt, judge, be partial, stagger, waver"
Examine - "Anakrino" is another Greek word closely associated with judge - to scrutinize, investigate, examine.
Test - dokimazo - to test (literally or figuratively); by implication, to approve:--allow, discern, examine, X like, (ap-)prove, try
Prove - peirazo to test (objectively), , scrutinize, entice, discipline:--assay, examine, go about, prove, tempt(-er), try.
What Do We Test?
Prophets
Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.(diakrino)
(I Corinthians 14:29)
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
Matt 7:15, 16
The spirit of the prophets
Dear friends, stop believing every spirit. Instead, test (dokimazo) the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
(I John 4:1)
Apostles
I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried ( peirazo) them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
(Revelation 2:2)
Angels
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
Galatians 1:8,9
Teaching
searched (anakrino) the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed;
Acts 17:11-12
Fruit
12 For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? 13 But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person
1 Corinthians 5:12-13
Everything
Quench not the Spirit. 20 Despise not prophesyings. 21 Prove (dokimazo) all things;hold fast that which is good. 1 Thess. 5
Objections The devil has sown many objections into the mind of the church to stop us from discovering his deceptions. Here are a few common ones.
1. "It Feels Like God"
For some reason many Christians think spiritual deception will look wrong, or fake. This is not true. The reason we are warned to test again and again is precisely because the devil works as an angel of light! It looks right, and feels right, but fails the test! Remember dioxin? A few grams in a lake kills everything. We are testing for spiritual dioxin!
2. "We Are Not To Judge"
Usually scriptures like "Judge not, that ye be not judged" are quoted. (Matt 7:1) The problem is, a few verses later Jesus talks about judging the dogs, swine and fruit of false prophets! In fact Jesus says we are to judge. "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. "John 7:24
Paul also instructed us to judge in the house of God! Especially concerning immorality.
After all, is it my business to judge outsiders? You are to judge those who are inside, aren't you? 13 God will judge outsiders. \u201cPut that wicked man away from you.\u201d1Corinthians 5:12,13
It is clear that judging is a matter of context. In frivolous matters, appearances NO. In matters of immorality, the gospel, apostles, prophets, the spirits - YES
3. "Don't Touch God's Anointed"
When I hear this verse quoted I have to excercise patience. It reeks of arrogance and spiritual pride, It is an excuse that elevates a man, and shirks spiritual responsibility! Even the people that say it feel it isn't true, but don't know why! Heres why.
First, the term "God's anointed" refers to King Saul. He was anointed King of Israel. Not touching God's anointed meant David could not murder Saul and remain guiltless. (1 Samuel 24:6) Unless anyone is intending to murder the "man of God" it doesn't apply.
Secondly, we are all brothers in the Lord Jesus Christ! Unlike King Saul and David, there is no Christian that is lord over another. No prophet or apostles is beyond having his teaching, prophecies and revelations tested!
Anyone who claims otherwise already fails the test! Contrary wise, the Bereans, in the book of Acts, were commended for checking out the apostles teaching!
The Three Tests
Here are three simple tests that can be applied to any situation. I learned them while attending a seminary where I encountered many false doctrines. The liberal professors were very nice people, and very convincing. I was a young Christian and did not know my bible very well, so I asked the Lord to help me. Through the help of a very seasoned pastor these tests enabled me to keep on track. Of course, Jesus was front and center. It is the most important characteristic of all three tests. At first I methodically applied the steps one at a time, but with use they became a "filter" that I now apply automatically.
1. The Spirit Test
Dear friends, stop believing every spirit. Instead, test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
2 This is how you can recognize God's Spirit: Every spirit who acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God. 3 But every spirit who does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the Antichrist. You have heard that he is coming, and now he is already in the world.
(I John 4:1-3)
This is an amazing scripture because John tells us to check the actual spirit involved with a prophet, revelation, or manifestation. The test is simple. What spirit is it? Is it the Holy Spirit? How do we know? Does that spirit confess Jesus as God in the flesh? Jesus, the only begotten son of God? If it's not pointing to Him, it's not Him! It is the spirit of Antichrist.
Remember, "Antichrist" does not mean 'against Christ" but "instead of Christ". Something else is the focus instead of Jesus. Amazingly, some prophets today actually tell us they are listening to another spirit! But, according to Jesus, the Holy Spirit will always be making known the things of Jesus Himself.
14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine. That is why I said, \u2018He will take what is mine and declare it to you.\u2019
John 16:14,15
2. The Scripture Test
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be complete and thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16,17
This test is so obvious we can miss it. The Holy Spirit gave us the scriptures, so anything supernatural He does today, prophecy, signs, visions, etc. must agree with what He says in scripture! We can easily apply the test to any teaching, but also to conduct and a spiritual instruction! But what happens if we listen to a false spirit without testing?
A minister I know lost his wife to cancer. Then a "spirit filled" Christian woman in another city thought the Spirit of God was prophetically telling her to leave her husband and marry this minister. She wrote letters to his office, but because they were so strange, and it was a time of grieving, the secretary chose to "file" them. Eventually the woman wrote saying God told her to kill her husband! At that point it was all exposed and the woman's pastor was contacted.
This woman was passively receiving every thought as if it was from God. But, it was an evil spirit imitating the Holy Spirit! This is how Satan is destroying lives in the modern church that seeks God's glory and anointing! We need to apply the scripture test! We know the Holy Spirit says adultery and murder are sin! So we know this was an evil spirit! But what about things that may not be such an obvious sin. What about motives and chartacter? The next test covers those.
3. The Fruit Test
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, parties, envyings, drunkenness, revellings, and such like.... But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control; against such there is no law.
Gal 5:19-23
This test is simple. The flesh not only produces clear sin, but is lacking in the fruit of the spirit. We can test "the character" of a revelation, a spirit, a prophet,a supernatural experience. The Holy Spirit will inspire His characteristic "fruit of the Spirit". The devil will entice his characteristic "works of the flesh". We can ask many questions to do this test.
-Does what we are testing exhibit the fruit of the Spirit?
-Does the experience have the character of Jesus? Is it like Him?
-Is it pushy and demanding it's own way, or does it leave time to be tested?
-Is it righteous and holy? Does it produce peace and joy?
-Does it point to grace, and the gospel, or to man's works?
- Does it have religious obligation, and striving for God to work?
-Does it say "you must or you'll miss it"? Does it stir up envy? Pride?
-Does it exalt a man? Who are people talking about? It should be Jesus!
Ask the lord to give you the needed question.
If we can see Jesus, that is a good sign that it comes from Him. If we see repentance, holiness, and love. Thats a good sign the Holy Spirit inspired it. He is HOLY.
Conclusion
For false christs and false prophets will appear and display great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.
(Matthew 24:24)
As the kingdom of God draws near we will experience many more supernatural events. Satan is also working to "deceive the very elect". The Lord has warned us to be on guard, to test everything and resist the devil. We have clear instructions for our protection.
When something passes every test, then we can "go for it" with confidence!
May the lord bless you!
Terry
Sunday, 20. April 2008, 23:14:40
religion, church, grace
It's obvious that many Christians just don't understand the cross, grace or indeed anything aobut the true nature of Christianity.
From the ABC:
Christians fist fight at Jerusalem's Holy Sepulchre
A scuffle broke out at the traditional site of Jesus's burial on Sunday, when Greek Orthodox and Armenian believers, who fiercely protect their hold over sections of the shrine, traded blows.
Police said a fist-fight broke out after Armenian worshippers yanked a Greek Orthodox cleric away from a tomb in Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the traditional site of Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection.
A spokesman said he did know the precise cause of the scuffle. Fights are not uncommon among the representatives of Christian sects who jealously guard their rights to parts of the centuries-old church.
"There is always tension there between the different sides," police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. "That's why police were on scene ahead of time to prevent any arguments or disturbances from breaking out."
No injuries were reported but two Armenians were briefly detained.
Worshippers had gathered at the church in the Old City for Orthodox Palm Sunday, when eastern churches celebrate Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey. Western churches celebrated Palm Sunday and Easter last month.
About 100 Armenians gathered at a Jerusalem police station to protest the detention of the two men but were later dispersed.
-Reuters
Article
Saturday, 22. March 2008, 20:14:30
religion, easter, church, politics
...
From ekklesia.co.uk
Putting an end to scapegoating
By Giles Fraser
22 Mar 2008
Somewhere in the Middle East, Jesus Christ is strapped to a bench, his head wrapped in clingfilm. He furiously sucks against the plastic. A hole is pierced, but only so that a filthy rag can be stuffed back into his mouth. He is turned upside down and water slowly poured into the rag. The torturer whispers religious abuse. If you are God, save yourself you fucking idiot. Fighting to pull in oxygen through the increasingly saturated rag, his lungs start to fill up with water. Someone punches him in the stomach.
Perhaps this is how we ought to be re-telling the story of Christ's passion. For ever since the cross became a piece of jewellery, it has been drained of its power to sicken. Even before this the Romans had taken their hated instrument of torture and turned it into the logo of a new religion. Few makeovers can have been so historically significant. The very secular cross was transformed into a sort of club badge for Christians, something to be proud of.
Two weeks ago, the most powerful Christian in the world vetoed a bill that would have made it illegal for the CIA to use waterboarding on detainees. "We need to ensure our intelligence officials have all the tools they need to stop the terrorists," said George Bush in a passable impersonation of Pontius Pilate. "This is no time for Congress to abandon practices that have a proven track record of keeping America safe."
Throughout his time in office, the president has frequently been photographed in front of the cross. Yet as his support for torture demonstrates, he has understood little of its meaning. For the story of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus is supremely a moral story about God's identification with victims.
The French anthropologist René Girard is the modern voice that has done most to explain the nature of this moral change. Human societies, he argues, are often held together by scapegoating. From the playground to the boardroom, we pick on the weak, the weird or the different as a way of securing communal solidarity. At times of tension or division, there is nothing quite as uniting as the "discovery" of someone to blame - often someone perfectly innocent. For generations of Europeans, the Jews were cast in the role; in the same way women have been accused of being witches, homosexuals derided as unnatural, and Muslims dismissed as terrorists.
The crucifixion turns this world on its head. For it is the story of a God who deliberately takes the place of the despised and rejected so as to expose the moral degeneracy of a society that purchases its own togetherness at the cost of innocent suffering. The new society he called forth - something he dubbed the kingdom of God - was to be a society without scapegoating, without the blood of the victim. The task of all Christians is to further this kingdom, "on earth as it is in heaven".
Yet, for all his years in office, it is hard to think that President Bush has done anything much to make this kingdom more of a reality. Instead he has given us rendition, so-called specialised interrogation procedures, and the blood of many thousand innocent Iraqis. Given all this, what can it possibly mean for George Bush to call himself a Christian?
Easter is not all about going to heaven. Still less some nasty death cult where a blood sacrifice must be paid to appease an angry God. The crucifixion reveals human death-dealing at its worst. In contrast, the resurrection offers a new start, the foundation of a very different sort of community that refuses the logic of scapegoating.
The kingdom is a place of shocking, almost amoral, inclusion. All are welcome, especially the rejected. At least, that's the theory. Unfortunately, very few of us Christians are any good at it.
Friday, 28. December 2007, 06:11:48
religion, church, christmas
From the SMH:
Priests scuffle with brooms, stones at Church of the Nativity
Robed Greek Orthodox and Armenian priests went at each other with brooms and stones inside the Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity as long-standing rivalries erupted in violence during holiday cleaning.
The basilica, built over the grotto in Bethlehem where Christians believe Jesus was born, is administered jointly by Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Armenian Apostolic authorities. Any perceived encroachment on one group's turf can set off vicious feuds.
Dozens of priests and cleaners came to the fortress-like church to scrub and sweep the floors, walls and rafters ahead of the Armenian and Orthodox Christmas, celebrated in the first week of January. Thousands of tourists visited the church this week for Christmas celebrations.
But the dusting became a dustup, turned ugly after some of the Orthodox faithful stepped inside the Armenian church's section, touching off a scuffle between about 50 Greek Orthodox and 30 Armenians.
Palestinian police, armed with batons and shields, quickly formed a human cordon to separate the two sides so the cleaning could continue, then ordered an Associated Press photographer out of the church.
Four people, some with blood running from their faces, were slightly wounded.
Read more
here
Wednesday, 5. December 2007, 06:13:04
religion, unbelief, christian
The Gospel vs Religion and Irreligion“Christians come to see that both their sins and their best deeds have all really been ways of avoiding Jesus as savior. They come to see that Christianity is not fundamentally an invitation to get more religious. A Christian comes to say: “Though I have often failed to obey the moral law, the deeper problem was why I was trying to obey it! Even my efforts to obey it has been just a way of seeking to be my own savior. In that mindset, even if I obey or ask for forgiveness, I am really resisting the gospel and setting myself up as Savior.”
To “get the gospel” is turn from self-justification and rely on Jesus’ record for a relationship with God. The irreligious don’t repent at all, and the religious only repent of sins. But Christians also repent of their righteousness. That is the distinction between the three groups–Christian, moralists (religious), and pragmatists (irreligious).”
- Tim Keller, “The Centrality of the Gospel”
Wednesday, 19. September 2007, 04:07:55
humour, religion, church
From the ever-incisive "Ongoing Adventures of ASBO Jesus":
http://asbojesus.wordpress.com/2007/09/19/73/
Monday, 13. August 2007, 23:44:45
religion, china, buddhism, government
From Newsweek:
In one of history's more absurd acts of totalitarianism, China has banned Buddhist monks in Tibet from reincarnating without government permission. According to a statement issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the law, which goes into effect next month and strictly stipulates the procedures by which one is to reincarnate, is "an important move to institutionalize management of reincarnation." But beyond the irony lies China's true motive: to cut off the influence of the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual and political leader, and to quell the region's Buddhist religious establishment more than 50 years after China invaded the small Himalayan country.
Monday, 2. April 2007, 10:34:45
religion, grace
So many people are caught up in the deception of religion... everything from animism to Islam, Buddhism, New Age, Environmentalism, twisted forms of christianity.
All of these "isms" share the common belief that we can somehow manipulate the Spirit "out there" to consider us acceptable, and thus ensure that our fate is favourable.
Religion seems to be the "default" setting in the human spirit. We intuitively know that there is something there, that we fall short and that we need to do something about it.
True Christianity is anti-religious... in fact the early christians were considered to be atheists by the Romans because the God they worshipped didn't seem to make sense.
Christianity, stripped of all the traditions and accumulated trivia, says that you don't have to be religious to make God happy with you. In fact, God already loves you and desperately wants you to be a part of His family. In fact, He loves you so much that He sent His one and only Son into the world so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Jesus Christ died to set the whole world free from the curse of sin- it's like the judge takes the rap for the criminal.
God laid down His life to show us that there is a better way to live than striving for power and survival and proving that we are better than somebody else. The Creator died to save His creation.
It's crazy but true!
What's even crazier is that there are still billions of people out there trying all sorts of things to get peace with God when it's already there for the taking.
You don't have to pray five times a day-- in fact with Jesus your whole life becomes a prayer!
You don't have to fast through Lent or offer sacrifices to the spirits of your ancestors.
GOD ALREADY LOVES YOU.
THERE IS NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO ADD TO THAT
Just hold out your arms and receive His love.
Be blessed
In the precious name of Jesus
Keith
Saturday, 28. October 2006, 01:04:09
faith, religion
Yesterday, I read in the Sydney morning Herald that a mother has been told that her son is not able to celebrate his bar-Mitzvah because according to the Orthodox rabbis his circumcision is not complete. Although he was circumcised on the eighth day, by an authorised person supervised by a rabbi, the job wasn't done quite right and now he has to have a special operation to fix the job, if he is to celebrate his bar-Mitzvah in an Orthodox synagogue. The mother decided to try a more liberal rabbi.
The outrage over the comments of Sheik Hilaly comparing women who don't wear the hajib to uncovered meat that attracts cats continues to fuel debate and controversy. The Sheik apparently thinks that men cannot control themselves and shouldn't be blamed if they commit rape and other forms of sexual assault.
Both of these situations illustrate the heart of the religious spirit.
You don't change a person's heart by dealing with their outward appearance or behaviour. Covering a woman's body does not deal with the heart issues in a man regarding lust and power. In the Old Testament, there are several accounts of men raping women and this was in a society where women covered up. The prophets said that circumcision of the flesh was less important than circumcision of the heart.
In other words we need a change of heart more than we need a change in outward behaviour.
Religion, whether Judaism or Islam or institutional religious christianity will not change our heart.
We need a living relationship with God, through the grace of Jesus Christ to change our hearts.
Religion will only bring death, but the Spirit of God bring life.
The problem with religion, in all its forms, is that it deceives us into believing that if we do things we will be OK with God. There is no religious thing you can do that will make you righteous. You can pray and fast all you like, make pilgrimages, wear the right clothes and attend various ceremonies... it is all useless.
The promise of God is that if we turn to Him with a truly repentant heart, and receive the sacrifice of Jesus, then we will find love and forgiveness, a new start that makes us truly righteous.
Give your heart to Jesus today. He will give you a new heart, a new start, a new life.
That's better than any religion can offer you.
WIDGETIZE