Category — religion

Excellent news via the Orlando Sentinel:

Members of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando voted overwhelmingly Sunday to break away from the Presbyterian Church (USA) to join the conservative Evangelical Presbyterian Church (EPC).

The 1,759 to 185 vote exceeded the two-thirds majority needed to seek dismissal from the PC (USA). The 3,600-member First Presbyterian is the largest Presbyterian church in Florida and fourth largest in the nation.
First Presbyterian has been losing membership in recent years and blamed some of that on PC (USA) doctrines that permitted the ordination of gay deacons, elders and clergy. Some also blamed the decline on doctrines that quest questioned the Bible as the literal word of God and Jesus Christ as the only salvation.
“The PC (USA) has turned its back on God and is a denomination dying in the wilderness,” said Cleat Simmons, a church elder, who favored leaving.

Any denomination that accepts and affirms homosexuality might as well prepay their burial costs. The stench of death is heavy on the Presbyterian Church USA and all those who believe God should exit before they are consumed with the walking dead.  This, people of God,  is what allowing the leaven of gay christian theology will do to your local church and any organization which permits this wickedness to have place. Congratulations to the leadership and membership of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando.

“At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here,for Herod wants to kill you.” And he said to them, ”Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’ O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! Behold, your house is forsaken. And I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ’Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” Luke 13:31-35

As I read these words from My Savior, I thought of this an appropriate message to “the black church”.

Ode to the black church

When the word of God is taught/preached in a complete and sound method (expository), you will always have those who obfuscate the truth. Meaning they will purposely teach and lead their listeners into confusion and error. They do not present what the bible says with clarity and understanding to bless those who hear it. But again they pose as real God-fearing, bible believing teachers, when in reality they are nothing more than spiritual dung beetles who desire the spotlight. 

One need no more than to look around at the majority of Christian “bible” teachers on the media scene today. Most, (and it saddens me to say this) have no more bible knowledge than a cockroach has lips, yet they are loved and lifted up as the Men of God for today! While those who labor in the word both day and night suffer for righteous sake, are frowned upon, rejected and scorned for their exclusive, non ecumenical, uncompromising message, which is exactly what our Lord and Savior preached.

The only way to fight lies and error?

By boldly presenting, teaching, preaching, and living out the TRUTH (God’s word). But one must first grasp the truth before they can teach it. One must fully know and understand the truth, before attempting to distribute it to others.

So let’s make one thing clear

By the grace of God I know the truth, not to sound boastful, but its true. I know the truth, and it’s because I know the word of God. You can take that statement as you want, but understand that the truth is not my truth. It didn’t originate with me, nor am I its author. The truth comes from God. It belongs to Him, and He gave it to us. When I preach my authority comes from God. For His words are the authority.

Where can we find that truth?

Only one place….His Word. His open letter to us concerning Him, His Righteousness, His Holiness, His Peace, His Salvation, and His Glory. The Autobiography of His Son, The Christ, The Messiah, The Anointed One, The Mighty God and Everlasting Father.

This Truth is the Truth (John 1:1-3). He is both Lord of all and Savior to those who believe.

So why in the world would people (in the church) tolerate a person who comes not in the name of the Lord to bring Him glory, but in His own name with doctrines of demons and lies that lead to hell? Why would the church completely reject sound teaching and doctrine that is taught for their spiritual health and soul salvation? That question is a glaring one, bold and rebellious sitting right in the faces of so-called church leaders who have turned from God and have embraced humanism. Humanism that will never ever be able to save the souls of those who hear it. Humanism that teaches man that they can be good and better people without ever leading them to the only one who is good. GOD! (Mark 10:18)

The wisdom of men will do that to you. The wisdom of men will raise up large religious cults (Jehovah’s Witness, Mormonism, Islam) that fall vastly short in addressing man’s biggest problem. Sin! The wisdom of men will try to change a sinful world by engaging in politics and legislation to change the laws of the land, but never successfully changing the nature of men, thus keeping them dead in their sins.

When did we lose sight of what truth is?

How have we (the church) fallen so far away from the very thing that was given to us to lead us into the truth? Why is it that churches no longer preach the gospel message? Preferring instead to lure in the sinners with music concerts, kids jams, raffles, and free gas offers. Why have we left the gospel? Don’t we understand the gospel is the power of God that changed our lives? (Romans 1:16) Don’t we remember the dread, the anguish, and condemnation that pressed heavily upon our hearts sending us into hopelessness when we found out that our sin totally separated us from God, and exposed us as hell bound sinners deserving of every ounce of wrath that God would pour upon us? Don’t we remember the sweet and loving peace that fell over us when we finally understood that Jesus Christ died for that very sin, He drank the wrath of God, to save us from that awesome and terrible day?

How dare we rob people of the same conversion! How dare we look at God in the face and tell Him His message in out of date no longer needed to save the lost!

Who do we think we are?

That’s our problem. We are what the world tells us. We are great and special and somebody. And even if we don’t feel that way the world tells us to embrace it anyways. We reject what the bible says about us being hell bound sinners in need of a savior. No, we would rather hear how diverse and unique we are. How we should be ourselves and embrace ourselves not knowing that as we do that, we are embracing the very disease (SIN) that God hates, and sent His Son to die for so that those who believe might be saved.

In other words man has an identity crisis.

Is there any hope?

I’ll echo the words Paul Washer uttered to a man who asked Him if He could be saved: “I  don’t know….”

If the church, who claims to know God and His Son Jesus Christ, will repent and turn back to Him. If…

FERNDALE, MI – A minister and police chaplain from the gay christian denomination Metropolitan Community Church has been removed from his duties after a drug and sex party at his home resulted in the death of another man.

WDIV in Detroit carried  the story [source]

A 43-year-old man died after a sex party Sept. 20 at the Ferndale Police chaplain’s house. Police Chaplain Rev. Mark Bidwell [facebook], who is also the minister at Ferndale’s Metropolitan Community Church, called 911 Wednesday morning to report a man at his home had stopped breathing.

“I’ve got someone who has apparently stopped breathing,” Bidwell said. He said he met the man, Steven Fitch, of Lincoln Park, on a website the night before. Bidwell told police he invited Fitch over to his house for sex and that he didn’t know anything about him.911 dispatcher: “How old is he?” Bidwell: “Honestly, I don’t even know. We just met today.” Police said Fitch brought crystal methamphetamine to Bidwell’s home and injected himself.

Fitch later died at a hospital. Bidwell told police that Fitch injected him with the drug as well. The men had sex and invited a third man over to join the party, police said.  The 911 dispatcher asked Bidwell if Fitch was using any narcotics.  “Um. I don’t know,” Bidwell told the dispatcher.  Ferndale Mayor Dave Coulter said Bidwell is a respected member of the gay community and is involved in the entire Ferndale community. “This is not the Rev. Bidwell that I or most of us know,” Coulter said. “I am shocked and sad and worried for him.  “Police said Bidwell has been relieved of his chaplain duties at the Ferndale Police Department.Police also said there was no evidence to charge Bidwell. Bidwell did not respond to Local 4′s request for comments.

This was apparently something the “respected member” of the community engaged in on a regular basis. Birdwell told police he met the man on a gay sex website and invited him over for sex.

Just several weeks prior to the deadly drug and sex party at his home, Bidwell falsely accused Reverend David C. Vorce, President and CEO of the International Fellowship of Chaplains, Inc of  “advocating the murder of homosexuals”. [source] Bidwell dropped out of a chaplaincy improvement program citing fear of Vorce.

Very typical given the low standards of personal conduct for MCC clerics. According a statement from the denomination’s website, Bidwell has since resigned as pastor of the church. Notice that the only thing they were concerned with was the “illegal drug use”. Said the Rev. Dr. Nancy Wilson, Moderator of the Metropolitan Community Church:

“We are deeply saddened whenever drug addiction impacts an individual or a community.  No community across this country is immune from the scourge of illegal drugs, but when it hits close to home, we are reminded of the commitment we have to teach people about the harms of drug abuse and to be a place of spiritual healing for those who are recovering.”

We’ve reported before on this gross caricature of a Christian denomination and its ministers who have portrayed Christ as a promiscuous homosexual having sex with his disciples, a prominent MCC minister who openly claimed to masturbate to images of Jesus, purchased a $55,000 ventriloquist Jesus, members arent required to believe Jesus is savior, encouraged people to deface the bible out of hate toward scriptures that condemn homosexuality and more religious madness than you can imagine.

Not sure what to make of this developing –but strange— controversy involving a franchise of the Mars Hill Church and Portland, Oregon’s stridently liberal gay community. The story via the Christian Post:

“Things were expected to get ugly outside Mars Hill Church’s new Portland, Ore., location this Saturday, as gay rights groups planned to protest the megachurch‘s move into the city for their stance against homosexuality. Fortunately for Tim Smith, a Portland native and the pastor of the new branch of the church, he was forced to postpone the first service due to parking issues, buying him some time to address those who criticize his doctrine.”

Faced with the controversy, the pastor of the church went into possum mode it seems, even raising “parking” issues.

On the Portland branch’s blog on Thursday, Smith wrote, “Mars Hill is without a doubt a ‘single-issue’ church. But, contrary to how many have been quick to portray us, that one issue is not opposition to any particular political, moral, or social issue.”

The only reason the church exists, he says, is “to make disciples of Jesus Christ.”

But how can you make disciples when you have not preached the gospel to those who are lost? That would be the homosexuals in the community in which the church is located. Why move there only to coexist? The church seems to be dumbing down evangelism for the sake of peace.

“His challenge moving forward is to embrace that anger and want to learn about why that exists and how being part of a religious institution has gotten people to that place.”

Although Smith still affirms his belief that homosexuality is a sin, he says that his church will not take the Gospel and “force it down anyone’s throat.” He also notes that his church has something in common with the gay community, having been protested by Westboro Baptist Church and “the religious right” for serving the community and their lack of political advocacy.

“You will not hear us preach that we are the good guys and the sinners of Portland should be more like we are,” he wrote. “If you want to come and hear what we have to say, you will hear that Jesus is so loving and gracious he can even save sinners as awful as we are and make us more like himself.”

That’s a strange common ground stance to adopt. Since when did being “protested” by Westboro Baptist Church become some biblical badge of honor?

The church’s sexual civil war is going global. Thankfully, there’s good news to report from the Mexican front via the Washington Post as the Presbyterian Church (USA) suffers another loss because of their ungodly support of homosexuality.

Presbyterians in Mexico are breaking ties with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) because of differences over homosexuality.

The theologically conservative National Presbyterian Church of Mexico voted to stop working with the U.S. denomination. U.S. Presbyterians voted last May to remove barriers for ordaining people in same-sex relationships. The churches share a 139-year history and a network of social service ministries that spans the Mexican-U.S. border.

Presbyterian leaders in the United States said Wednesday they are saddened by the decision and hope to find a way they can continue helping the needy in Mexico and along the border.

The vote by the Mexican church was announced as a group of theologically conservative U.S. Presbyterians meet in Minnesota to debate whether they should break with the denomination, which is based in Louisville.

Presbyterian leadership in the US (like several other mainline US denominations) have been steadily bleeding memberships after capitulating to homosexual religious activists entrenched in the organizations. Some, like the Episcopal church have taken a vindictive position to fleeing churches. See here and here for examples.

Per 1 Corinthians 5, severing fellowship is the right thing to do when fellow Christians go against God’s word and refuse to repent. GCM Watch congratulates the Mexican church and encourages other bodies to follow suit.

Good news out of Africa. Now, if only US denominations would stop being afraid (read:politically correct) of doing what the bible said to do.

The Ghana News Agency reported on yesterday that one denomination in the West African nation is reaching out to help homosexuals out of sin as a way of reducing the spread of homosexuality.

The Presbyterian Church of Ghana (PCG), is to establish therapy centres for homosexual victims for counselling and rehabilitation in the various communities.

The church has therefore called on the government to come out with a clear position on homosexuality in the country, to enable the church to offer the necessary support in helping to reduce the spread of the practice in the society.

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the PCG, Right Reverend Professor Emmanuel Martey (pictured left) said this at the commissioning of 36 Ministerial Probationers of the church at the Ranseyer Congregation, at Abetifi.

He said homosexuality was spreading fast in the society and urged the country’s leaders and Ministers to put up effective measures to check it and transform the destiny of the country.

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the PCG said the church need leaders, who will go out of the ordinary, filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit to advocate for the deprived.

He said though the probationers would face a lot of challenges in their operations, the Lord would deliver them from all their problems, if they rely on the lord and pray regularly.

Mr Vincent Lawer Marji, on behalf of the probationers, assured to abide by the rules and regulations of the church and call for support from all members of the church.

Is their motive right? That’s debatable, but we commend them for taking a step to help. Prayerfully as they move forward the Holy Spirit will guide them and their motivations.

Is helping homosexuals to change biblical? Of course it is. Its just as biblical as opening the eyes of the blind, feeding the hungry and clothing the naked.

Jesus explicit mission is laid out in Isaiah 61:1-2

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; ESV

Anyone who is in captivity to sin is a candidate for the delivering power of God. Homosexuality like any other sin holds a person captive to lust and perversion. When the church reaches out to offer them freedom, they are fulfilling the mission of Jesus Christ.