Love him or hate him Issey’s comments from a Christian perspective touched off a fire storm of controversy in the secular media of both Australia and New Zealand and to a lesser extent across the West. Coming on the heals of the Christchurch Mosque Shootings emotions were already running high so when Issey was tempted into make a controversial post on Twitter about the types of sin that are out there and the need for repentance. That tore it in the eyes of the secularists. This type of hate speech is not acceptable they railed at him. “Fire him!” “Tear up his contract.” “We need stronger laws on hate speech.” and even “Parts of the bible should be labelled hate speech.”
As to the later they can do what they want to the bible, and have done, including burn it. The fact is that God will always ensure his people have his word. Ask any bible believing Christian anywhere in the world. The Lord will provide for his people including making sure his word is available in one form or other. The enemy has endeavoured to rid the world of the Word of God for the last twenty centuries and doubtless the Torah and the prophets were on the hit list for more than a thousand years before the coming of Jesus of Nazareth. God looks after his people.
Actually, the main reason for this piece is not to support or detract from what Israel Folau has said or done in regard to calling people to repentance. He has called people to repent and follow Jesus Christ and in doing so has taken up his cross and will receive the rewards of heaven and this world for his efforts. No indeed, I simply want to point to the out that underpinning the fabulous rise of secularism that we in the West have witnessed over the last five or six decades is Paganism as described in the Old Testament in the bible.
Throughout the centuries and even within the Christian Church herself those who practice idolatry and the worship of pagan deities worked studiously and insidiously to enact the plans of the devil. The Mystery of Iniquity has progressed beyond the light of day among some of the most powerful families on Earth. In fact the enemy has aimed for the best and most successful to garner power over the fate of the nations. Today they have absolute power over almost the entire world and plans so shrewd that they have enclosed the very sins the bible rails against in the normality of secular living. If it were possible beyond the scrutiny of moral conviction and the outrage of the righteous while at the same time educating our young to believe evil is good and good is evil. From a Christian perspective a tragic joke.
Secular society though is not a new creation. The Roman Empire was a pagan culture and functioned under what were to all intents and purposes secular tenants. What your neighbour did in his life, house or bedroom was up to him provided that he didn’t break the laws or interfere with anyone else. There were temples to various deities across the empire and they had their own practices and again provided they paid taxes and behaved themselves that was fine by Rome.
In the context that slavery was condoned and women had no real legal rights. If the temple of Aphrodite had large teams of bisexual prostitutes, both men and women, or the if Baal had a temple in Pergamum where children were sacrificed to that deity, then all kudos to them as long as they were loyal to Rome and the Emperor. Isn’t this what secularists are demanding in Western Culture today?
Doubtless, there are immense spiritual forces of darkness underpinning secularism in our Western Democracies. I think it is fair to argue that paganism and the worship of the Satanic deities may have gone underground but never even came close to dying out. Rather, they became an anti-christian movement infiltrating the upper echelons of the Church, changing the emphasis from the bible to church tradition and creating huge empires of wealth and power to influence the world when the conditions allowed. They even created other movements similar to Christianity to compete with, attack and destroy the Church in the form of Islam, the Latter Day Saints, the Jehovah’s Witness and even the Seventh Day Adventists. All of which are heavily influenced by pagan thinking and linked to the pagan community in the upper echelons of their leadership.
So as we look at secular New Zealand and hear the mantra of “Let your neighbour do what is good in their own sight.” In fact, we see that mantra legislated into a powerful force to muzzle the Christian Church in the attempt to restrain the work of the Holy Spirit from spreading the gospel. Meanwhile simultaneously reversing five hundred years of Christian Reformation once and for all. We can know with certainty that homosexuality, idolatry, fornication and the many other sins of those who oppose and hate Jehovah and his only Son, Yeshua (Jesus Christ), are enshrined in this secularism but have deep roots in paganism and spiritual darkness.
Therefore, we as Christians can only follow Israel Folau’s lead in proclaiming a warning to these peoples “Repent and turn back from this wickedness you peoples of the West, for the Day of the Lord is at hand and your sins are piled high as an affront before Jehovah, the Lord of Hosts. Repent for His judgement is upon you.” There is little doubt that there are hard times ahead of us as this time of falling away from the truth of Jesus Christ unfolds. I believe we Christians will be singled out for intense persecution as we were in Roman times. As the re paganisation of our culture unfolds and those adhering to righteousness and the gospel of salvation in Christ Jesus are targeted for pagan retribution.
Friends I want you to know that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whosoever believes on him shall not perish but inherit eternal life. You need to understand that you are not alone in needing his forgiveness. Romans 3:10 “There is none righteous, not even one.” Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and all fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” So won’t you believe on him that your sins may be forgiven and that you may receive the free gift of God which is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord?
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