Christians and Secularism

Secularism in the Socialist Society is founded on a rights based discourse. Groups within society compete for a position within the secular framework. Advocates of feminism, gay rights, race relations, abortion, euthanasia, Islam and a plethora of other groups including Christianity battle against each other for a share of the governments attention and the media limelight.

When the government focuses on socialist dogma then they begin the work of social engineering using the media to control the dominant discourse. Over time they begin to make progress and here in New Zealand we can now clearly see how over the last decades societal attitudes have indeed changed drastically. From a nominally Christian society in 1970 we are now becoming a strongly pagan society.

The incredible thing is that most people don't realise that women's rights, homosexuality and abortion are all strongly connected to the naturalistic religions like Baal worship, the worship of Diana of Ephesus and the worship of the pantheon in general. In fact, most people would not identify with pagan worship at all preferring to hold to some version of atheism. All the while they are being gradually duped into paganism by stealth.

Christianity is sadly not immune to this process of social engineering with liberal Christianity delving deeply into Buddhism and Yoga and even the Martial Arts. Conservative Christianity is adopting the rights based dialogue and complaining about the moral decline of society in general while demanding that their rights be respected.

Of course, the media is the perfect tool to portray Conservatives as bigots who are intolerant of other people in society. Science of course is the perfect scourge to beat Conservatives with saying the Gay folk can't help but be gay as that's how they are wired. Women need abortions for their mental health and so on. Fundamentalist Christians are just backward folks with a negative mindset. I've heard that there is research which even backs that argument which says conservatives have a mental mindset that predisposes them genetically to be negative and intolerant. This would tie into the New Age mantra that there is going to be a great jump forward which will leave the backward people who are mentally unprepared for next evolutionary leap behind.

So what should Christians do in the face of a changing reality? The Church is not as numerous as it was and society is now almost post secular as it becomes more and more pagan in nature. A world where from a Christian perspective the pervasive attitude is rapidly becoming the embodiment of Isaiah chapter 5 verse 20. "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!" From <https://biblehub.com/isaiah/5-20.htm> NASB

I think that Christians should take a watching brief as many of the prophets of the Old Testament did. Though rather than whine about our downtrodden rights and the wickedness of the wicked. I think we focus on being salt and light in the rapidly falling darkness. We be Christians and shine like a bright light on the horizon. We walk the righteousness of God and the love, joy and peace of the Holy Spirit. We share our Christ centred wisdom but not our self-centred condemnation.

We focus on the Great Commission. Matthew chapter 28 verses 18 to 20 "And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” From <https://biblehub.com/nasb_/matthew/28.htm> NASB

We follow the example of John Wesley and George Whitfield and ignore the sin of a fallen British nation given over to alcoholism and social evils of much the same ilk as we find our world descending into right now. As they did we kneel before a willing Saviour and Lord, Yahweh Elohim, and take every step to share the gospel with all and sundry, all that will hear, in the certain hope that God will prevail. Our nation can be redeemed.

This is the Day

I guess from a Christian point of view today is fraught with peril. Even in the Western World being a Protestant Christian is not the peaceful existence that it was fifty years ago. With the passing of the Great Generation and the general falling away from Christianity many Churches have closed their doors. Liberalism has spread through what is left and repentance is no longer proclaimed as a part of the gospel as it once was.

 

I don't know if you're familiar with the account in the book of Kings in the Bible of the time when the prophet Elijah stood against the prophets of Baal and their queen Jezebel (1 Kings 18). The wicked queen Jezebel had murdered the prophets of the Lord except for one hundred that Obadiah, the kings servant, had hidden away fifty to a cave and fed there.
 

Elijah told Obadiah to  tell King Ahab that he would meet with him. He instructed the King to bring all of the prophets of Baal and Asherah to Mount Carmel. He had them prepare a sacrifice of a bull and place it on an alter to Baal and put no fire under it. Baal was to light the fire to make the sacrifice. The prophets of Baal cried out to their God until the evening and no one heard their pleas nor took notice of them.

Elijah had the people rebuild the alter to the Lord and placed the sacrifice of a bull on the alter and at his instruction dig trenches around the alter and pour water over the sacrifice three times. He prayed that the God of Abraham and Isaac would show that he was the God of Israel that day. Fire came down and consumed the offering and alter and lapped at the water. Elijah told the people to capture the prophets of Baal and Asherah and they were all executed then and there.

 

He then prayed for rain upon the land as there had been a drought for three and a half years as Elijah had asked God to hold back the rain at the beginning of that time. God answered Elijah and he sent rain upon the land. Immediately following this huge victory given by God against the forces of evil. Jezebel threatened Elijah's life and in a very human way he panicked and ran away to hide.

And here we are in the present day again. So what can we take from this recount of Elijah's works on behalf of the Living God - Yahweh and apply to our lives? Well God was with Elijah throughout this three and one half year battle for the hearts and minds of the people of Israel. He protected him and at the end gave him a resounding victory over Baal and Asherah. Baal worshippers sacrificed their babies to a brass image of Baal by laying them on the heated arms of the image which were heated until they glowed red or placed in an oven within the image.

 We live in a time when evil is on the rise and we are as a population being seduced to abandon God and to do the bidding of governments that claim to be scientific and godless but who in reality are bringing into being a Satanic World Empire. We are being dupped into being citizens of that empire who will worship a coming world king who will claim to be the Christ.

 

As Christians we will have to stand for Jesus Christ in this time just as Elijah stood for Yahweh Elohim in his time. He was human and fallible and we are human and fallible but God was with him just as Christ Jesus is with us and we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. It will be a hard road and it may well come to believers dying for their faith. But remember when we are brought to account for our Lord the Holy Spirit will give us the words to speak (Luke 12:12). That he will give a crown to those who overcome (Revelation 2:10).

 

A parting thought, take up the Full Armour of God  (Ephesians 6: 11-13). "Put on the whole armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of [c]the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. From <https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ephesians+6&version=NKJV>

Salvation: What You Need to Know...

Biblical salvation can be a difficult thing to grasp but it can also be very simple. There is one verse in the bible that you need to understand before any of the others. That verse is found in the book of the Acts of the Apostles in chapter two and is verse thirty eight "Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." From <https://biblehub.com/acts/2-38.htm> If you realise that you have sin issue and repent in Jesus name making sure that you receive the sacrament of Baptism. You are saved once and for all.

 

As the apostle John puts it in chapter three verse sixteen “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life." From <https://biblehub.com/john/3-16.htm> So, if you believe on the only begotten son of God, Jesus Christ, you will not perish but have eternal life.

 

Now, there are a handful of other verses that can be helpful in gaining a understanding of the sin problem that we all have as members of humanity. For instance Romans chapter three verse ten "…as it is written: “THERE IS NO RIGHTEOUS PERSON, NOT EVEN ONE…"From <https://biblehub.com/romans/3-10.htm>  Romans chapter three verse twenty three

"…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…" From <https://biblehub.com/romans/3-23.htm> Romans chapter six verse twenty three "For the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." From <https://biblehub.com/romans/6-23.htm>

So in short you are not the only sinner in this world in need of the Blood of the Lamb to justify you and cleanse you of sin. In fact every human being is a sinner and needs to access the redemptive work of Christ Jesus on the Cross. None but Christ is righteous and all are guilty and deserving of death except Christ. But God is  gracious and merciful and His freely given gift is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. So what about it?