Thursday, August 30, 2007

Can Someone Explain It to Me?



Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb is His reward. --- Psalm 127:3

Our family in south central Pennsylvania recently had another celebration. In the above photo you see Owen being held by his sister, Madison (4 yrs). Also in the picture on Madison's left is her and Owen's brother, Trevor (6 yrs). They are the youngest of our grandchildren, which have quite a span when it comes to their ages. The oldest grandchild will be 27 years old this November.

Owen was just a few hours old when the above photo was taken. As I gazed upon this little fellow, so delicate and fragile, a question haunted me again as it has repeatedly for decades. That question was this -- how could anyone intentionally kill one such as this young one a few hours, days, or weeks before he or she was scheduled to be born?

Yes, I already know -- there are far too many individuals with rapid fire answers demonstrating once more that we are a culture of experts when it comes to the rationalization and justification of criminal acts of the most violent nature -- we can quickly provide very "logical" reasons as to why about 1 million little ones such as Owen should be violently mutilated and murdered each year in a republic known as the United States of America!

In response to our "logic" for destroying thousands of unborn children each week of the year, turn this over in your mind for a while -- if we could resurrect a dedicated Nazi SS officer from the WW II era, he would provide a series of rational and logical reasons why certain persons -- Jews and other "undesirables" should not be permitted to live and exist! He may be one of whom it was reported that Nazi soldiers would throw infants up in the air and SS officers would shoot at them for target practice with their Lugers!

"Heinous!" you say in response.

But just hold on for a moment -- what's the difference between what the SS officer did and what the guy in the white coat does each day in a building called a "clinic" which offers something called "women's health services?" The difference is simply in timing and the fact that the guy in the white coat doesn't have a skull and crossbones emblem embroidered on his coat as the Nazi SS officer had on his cap! The results are the same -- well, there is a difference even there -- the infant victim of the Nazi has a 9 mm bullet hole or two in its body -- the infant victim of the white coated guy doesn't even have a body anymore -- it's been torn to shreds due to something called a "medical procedure!"

Try it some time -- the next time you see a very young infant -- ask yourself the question -- "How could anyone kill one of these at any stage of its development in its mother's womb?" In fact, try asking some other people the same question when you are in the presence of one of those little ones who has been in this world a very short time.

And if you want to see something interesting, try asking that question of a United Methodist Church bishop, with an emphasis on why bishops in the United Methodist Church are so silent about the United States' version of Holocaust, individually and also collectively as the Council of Bishops of the UMC. Be prepared to see that church leader squirm like a worm on a hot skillet!

So I ask again -- how could ANYONE kill one of those little ones in the early stages of its development in its mother's womb? Can anyone explain that with solid justification as to why our national tally of unborn victims now exceeds 48 million?

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; and I ordained you a prophet to the nations." --- Jeremiah 1:4,5


George W. Bush the "Prophet!"



"And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria: they prophesied by Baal and caused My people Israel to err. Also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem: they commit adultery and walk in lies; they also strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns back from his wickedness. All of them are like Sodom to Me, and her inhabitants like Gomorrah. Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets: 'Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall; for from the prophets of Jerusalem profaneness has gone out into all the land.'" Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless; they speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the LORD. They continually say to those who despise Me, 'The LORD has said, "You shall have peace" '; and to everyone who walks according to the imagination of his own heart, 'No evil shall come upon you.'" --- Jeremiah 23:13-17

President George Bush at times seems to want to wear the mantle of a prophet. Recently he stressed the fact that history will prove that we did the right thing (or rather read, ‘George Bush did the right thing.’) by getting deeply involved in Iraq.

On the President’s part there is clearly an unwillingness to face both the bog of quicksand in which we find ourselves deeply mired in Iraq and the real reason for this deplorable circumstance!

Furthermore, as the nation’s #1 elected leader he has shown no sense of alarm nor even a hint of concern over the ethical, moral, and spiritual corruption that has brought us to the very brink of national collapse!

History is much more likely to record the United States as a nation richly blessed by Almighty God at its beginning and during many decades following that miraculous beginning. But in the latter years of its existence will be the tragic record of increased chastisements and ultimate judgment at the hands of the God it professed to trust as inscribed on coins and currency. This will be solely due to the fact that the majority of its elected officials, religious leaders, and citizens adopted a very deadly mindset which said, “What is purported to be God’s special revelation to us (the holy Scriptures) really is not so and we don’t have to pay any serious attention to it! We alone are the arbiters of what is right and wrong and will personally determine how we live and relate to each other.”

Yes indeed -- something for every spiritually sensitive person to bear in mind -– Bush the “prophet” would have been very much at home among a group of which it was said a long time ago,

“Now go, write it before them on a tablet, and note it on a scroll, that it may be for time to come, forever and ever: that this is a rebellious people, lying children, children who will not hear the law of the LORD; who say to the seers, "Do not see," and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us right things; speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits. Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us." Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: "Because you despise this word, and trust in oppression and perversity, and rely on them, therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach ready to fall, a bulge in a high wall, whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant.” And He shall break it like the breaking of the potter's vessel, which is broken in pieces; He shall not spare. So there shall not be found among its fragments a shard to take fire from the hearth, or to take water from the cistern." --- Isaiah 30:8-14



"I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in My counsel, and had caused My people to hear My words, then they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their doings. --- Jeremiah 23:21,22

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

God Doing Bad Things? Surely Not!



"Also I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities. and lack of bread in all your places; yet you have not returned to Me," says the LORD. I also withheld rain from you, when there were still three months to the harvest. I made it rain on one city, I withheld rain from another city. One part was rained upon, and where it did not rain the part withered. So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water, but they were not satisfied; yet you have not returned to Me," says the LORD. "I blasted you with blight and mildew. When your gardens increased, your vineyards, your fig trees, and your olive trees, The locust devoured them; yet you have not returned to Me," says the LORD. "I sent among you a plague after the manner of Egypt; your young men I killed with a sword, along with your captive horses; I made the stench of your camps come up into your nostrils; yet you have not returned to Me," says the LORD. "I overthrew some of you, as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a firebrand plucked from the burning; yet you have not returned to Me," says the LORD. "Therefore thus will I do to you, O Israel; and because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!" --- Amos 4:6-12

“God is a God of love – He would never do anything bad and He certainly would never send anyone to Hell – how could He be a God of love and do bad things that would bring pain and suffering into the lives of people?”

And so the reasoning goes on in broken record fashion. From theologians, seminary professors, influential church leaders and pastors all the way into church pews occupied by the laity, increased numbers are buying into a multifaceted heresy which boils down to one simple statement – “God would never do anything that would bring pain and suffering of any kind to humans because He is a God of unconditional love!”

This perverted view takes place due to:

  • the acceptance of the apostate position that the Bible is simply a human production of writings which are contradictory and subject to a wide variety of interpretations.

  • the idea that past cultures were victimized by superstitious practices and ideas about deities and these are reflected at times in the Scriptures. You know, the God of the Old Testament is a raging maniac who is mad all the time at somebody!

  • the fact that there has not been a serious effort to examine the total revelation given to us in order to more fully identify the God Who brought a mighty universe into existence by mere spoken command. God is revealed to be a God of love and compassion which the human mind cannot begin to comprehend. However, He is also a God of chastising actions and ultimately a God of wrath and judgment if His chastising actions do not bring a people to full repentance and reconciliation with Him!

In this age of the Gospel it means personal and corporate repentance of all sin, the receiving of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and ongoing commitment to serve Him as Lord over all the affairs and relationships of life, personally and corporately!

Our republic is going through a lot of calamities of many kinds – military operations in confusion, financial uncertainty with a national debt in excess of 8 trillion dollars, environmental and weather instability, many diseases out of control, and social unrest of unprecedented proportions, to mention just a few.
Review carefully the conditions for blessing and warning of what will happen for persistent disobedience to God in Deuteronomy 28. Also notice the pattern which leads to God doing some very “bad things” as outlined in 2 Chronicles 36:11-21.

It's rather obvious that God has been speaking and calling for some time, but there has been no real desire to turn from our rebellion as a nation and seek His mercy and forgiveness, has there? How long do you think it will be before He drops the "other shoe?"

And the LORD God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, till there was no remedy. Therefore He brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on the aged or the weak; He gave them all into his hand. --- 2 Chronicles 36:15-17


Monday, August 27, 2007

Bits 'n Pieces from Here 'n There! - Vol. #1


For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He ponders all his paths. His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin. He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray. --- Proverbs 5:21-23

Michael Vick's Jersey Put to Very Good Use!

Did you hear the good news? Some group donated a batch of Michael Vick's #7 football jerseys for use in cleaning up doggy doo-doo and other undesirable materials from dog pens. You remember, that Michael Vick, multi-million dollar baby of the Atlanta Falcons, is in more than doggy doo-doo as a result of involvement in illegal dog fighting activities and other stuff. What an appropriate way to use a jersey with his name and number on it! One better thing would be to add to his sentence a daily requirement for him to clean dog pens for about 3 hours leading up to lunch time and that he would always have to use the #7 jersey with his name on it! That is, if he gets much of a sentence out of this fiasco -- it is said he will face a "tough" judge -- depends on how much of a Falcons fan the judge is as to how "tough" he is going to be!

Those Weather People and Hurricane Reporting!

Greed and one-upmanship combine to produce strange and idiotic results! Have you noticed how weather people are out in the midst of strong hurricanes doing their reporting -- trying to hold on to head gear, hold a microphone, maintain balance in vicious winds and heavy rain, and all the while confessing that people need to evacuate or have been evacuated because of the great DANGER which exists as the hurricane blows through the area! But competition being what it is, the attitude is, "I'll stand in the middle of this thing so I can go one better than my competitor reporters and get a good bonus, even if I get killed in the process!" If there is a Guinness Book of Records for stupidity, these people will have the next thing to a lock on the title!

Insurance Reps and Helmet Wearing on ATV's!

Is this a major debacle or what? In a prominent ATV magazine with a lot of pictures of action on the 4-wheelers you always see the riders wearing helmets plus other protective gear. If it is a still shot with the ATV parked and the rider either seated or standing beside the machine, he is holding the helmet if not wearing it. One insurance company is running an ad with 3 reps pictured on ATV's in such a position as to convey the idea they are about to take off on a ride. One thing obviously very, very wrong -- none is wearing a helmet, nor holding one -- in fact, not a helmet is to be seen anywhere! The emphasis is on safety and the need to be insured. But then, are the insurance reps a breed with extra hard heads which need no protection?????

There Is Murder and Then There Is a "Medical Procedure!"

Not so long ago a woman about 8 months pregnant was missing. Eventually her body was found and clear evidence that she had been murdered. Her boy friend was apprehended and at the news conference law enforcement officials announced that the boy friend would be charged with 2 (yes, that's right) -- 2 counts of murder -- the murder of the girl friend and the murder of the unborn child! How's that again? The boy friend gets charged with murdering an unborn baby, but the same day this all happened there were hundreds of unborn babies murdered in this country as a result of many acts of conspiracy with no charges of murder ever filed! A female decides she doesn't want to have the baby which is growing in her womb and so she contracts with some character who wears a white coat with the initials "M.D." behind his name, pays him a few hundred dollars, he mutilates and murders the unborn baby with his specialized "tools" and everyone (well, almost everyone) thinks this is a good thing because it is a constitutional right to have this happen thousands of times each week of the year! Perhaps that boyfriend could plead that he is really a "doctor" and was simply performing a late term abortion in a different way and unfortunately the mother died in the process. Yes, Virginia, hypocrisy is very much alive and thriving greatly in a republic known as the United States of America! But don't forget this, Virginia -- the Creator of this mighty universe has not yet made His response to this repugnant practice. Perhaps you better get your passport and get out of the country before He does -- it's not going to be very pleasant to be within the boundaries of the U.S.A. when that response is revealed as it most surely will be!

Friday, August 17, 2007

Good News! The Business of War Is Scheduled To Be Shut Down!



For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. --- Isaiah 9:6, 7

Peace – a subject so often discussed and the professed “goal” of many a gathering of powerful and very influential people in the world time after time. However, it is also a most elusive item as well. It seems that so often even as peace discussions take place, the parties involved make sure they have a finger on the trigger, just in case!

War continues to be a very big business operation -- note the hard reality of how it is in today's world:

  • billions of dollars (or other monetary units) to maintain military services in terms of personnel and locations where they live and work.

  • staggering outlays for hardware in its many forms of existence ranging all the way from mass destruction weaponry, planes, ships, submarines, and tanks to the small arms used by individuals in combat scenarios.

  • a tad more than a $1.98 is needed by companies in their R & D departments as more sophisticated weaponry and means of delivery proceed from the drawing board to actual deployment in times of conflict.

  • companies also pull down astronomical profits in selling war making equipment to other smaller nations and this is done not only by those within the boundaries of the United States but by a number of other larger nations outside the USA boundaries as well!

  • and there are those companies which have good “connections” in Washington DC which are now in places such as Iraq making gigantic sums of money in “reconstruction” work, whatever that is supposed to mean. Already millions of dollars are unaccounted for in Iraq. It doesn’t take many brain cells to see why there is a crowd that delights in war and wants more of it – the “fix it” guys who have personal and company bank accounts that are bulging at the seams!

BUT, one of these days the profitable war bubble is going to burst – all businesses related to production of materials for war will be shut down!

All military services will be disbanded – no more men or women wearing military uniforms and doing duty somewhere in the world.

Read closely how it is told by one prophet:

Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, and we shall walk in His paths." For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore. --- Isaiah 2:2-4

Quite a dramatic change, is it not, when implements of war are made into implements which help to promote peace and prosperity?

Remember that this wonderful event will not take place upon the initiative of the leaders of world governments. These characters will continue to mistrust each other and those of the more powerful nations will attempt to dictate to the smaller and weaker nations how to conduct their affairs, including, “We have nuclear weapons, but don’t you produce any!”

Jesus Christ, the foremost Authority on human behavior, declared how the latter stages of human history will play out:

"And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows." --- Matthew 24:6-8

The Scriptures explicitly state that a military coalition will foolishly try to oppose Jesus upon the occasion of His return to take complete control of planet earth:

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, "Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great." And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh. --- Revelation 19:11-21

Once Jesus eliminates all the ungodly (2 Thessalonians 1:7-10) and takes charge, then peace will be the order of the day all over the world. Wars and all implements for waging war will no longer exist.

Finally it will come to pass as many Christians have prayed through the centuries of human history, “…Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven…”

And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be; "the LORD is one," and His name one. --- Zechariah 14:9

For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. --- Habakkuk 2:14

Even so, come, Lord Jesus. --- Revelation 22:20b


Thursday, August 9, 2007

Is That a Hammer in Your Hand?


"Pounding nails in your coffin!"

It's an expression sometimes used that indicates one is doing something by way of a destructive lifestyle and hastening one's departure from this earthly life. Possibilities are virtually unlimited when it comes to social habits, unholy desires, and fatal involvements in this life -- you know, the kinds of things that lead to an early grave! Sometimes cigarettes have been referred to as "coffin nails" which is a rather accurate comparison!

Worse yet -- the "coffin" of a republic known as the United States of America is being prepared and a majority of us citizens with hammer in hand are pounding the nails!

Equally tragic is the fact that a majority of elected officials from the president all the way down to locally elect to school board members along with church leaders are oblivious to the fact that this is happening. And if you look closely, you will see that they too have hammers in their hands and are making a contribution in pounding a nail or two into our nation's "coffin!"

Here are the "nails" that are being driven, with a brief note about each:

  • A confounded love -- "love" that is abused, misused, perverted, and destructive!

  • A conceding church -- due to compromise over decades and persistent denials of core doctrines of the Christian faith, large number of churches find themselves foundering and unable to make a significant impact in a world swamped with over 6 billion people!

  • a contradictory government -- main goals of elected officials, especially at state and federal levels, involve retaining their positions plus the lavish perks and salary increases that they "award" to themselves!

  • a contagion of idolatry -- we have not fashioned a host of idols out of precious metals, stone, or wood, but we have managed to establish a bunch that exhibit defiance of Almighty God in ways that are far worse than the heathen of ancient history!

  • consigned children -- what other nation which makes the audacious claim to being civilized and a "nation under God" has ever brutally mutilated and murdered over 48 million unborn children since January 1973? Name one if you can!

  • a conflagration of immorality -- and what nation making that claim of being one "under God" is sanctioning every type of immoral and abominable sexual activity with examples set by high profile celebrities? And some of this abominable stuff is being increasingly accepted and approved within the ranks of the church which claims to be "Christian" in its faith!

  • contaminated Sabbaths -- Sunday should be renamed "Funday" because that would much more accurately reveal what we have become in the "land of the free and the home of the brave!" Less than half of our population is able to make it to a place and experience of worship on Sunday mornings, and of those who do make it, far too many can't wait to get out of church and on to fun, partying, and keeping up with the latest in professional or college sports happenings!

  • contrived origins -- growing concern has been shown regarding increased violence among our children and youth -- but then, what can we expect? We are teaching the vast majority that they are simply products of an evolutionary process with their roots somewhere in a pool of slime millions of years ago! So if animals figure prominently in our ancestry, why should we not act like animals? One who thinks through this a bit with a view of origins as established by Almighty God will have a whole different perspective about life and its purpose!


More details are given about this disaster of the first magnitude which now resembles a cancer in its terminal stages at Driving the Final Nails! A link at the bottom of that area will bring you back to this place.

By the way, is that a hammer I see you holding in your hand? You're not going to use that thing the way most people are doing right now, are you?



Tuesday, August 7, 2007

The One Bridge That Will Never, Ever Collapse!



Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." --- John 14:6

A major catastrophe occurred with the collapse of a bridge on I-35W during rush hour traffic in Minneapolis MN. A large number of vehicles were on the bridge at the time it crumbled and fell into the Mississippi River. There were fatalities and injuries. Divers continue to struggle in searching the murky waters for more victims. Some of the vehicles lie under tons of broken debris from the bridge. The Navy is bringing in a small unmanned submarine to check areas which are too risky for divers to explore.

News media people have focused intensely on this event and out of it have arisen questions about not only the safety of the bridge in question but bridges on highways all over the United States.

Local media in our area in central Pennsylvania are jumping on the coat tails of the national media and asking questions about the safety of bridges in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The state does rank pretty high when it comes to the grand total of bridges within its boundaries.

We have been shown video clips of bridges with crumbling concrete and badly corroded structural steel which is supposed to hold those bridges steady while we citizens travel over them.

The PA Department of Transportation has never made a serious effort to use materials in winter time which do not have a corrosive impact on bridges, a deteriorating effect on highways, and a major polluting effect on the environment. Rather, toxic substances are used to hasten melting of snow and ice. In the application of those substances our bridges suffer an accelerated process of corrosion and weakening to the point of eventual collapse. But this toxic junk tossed on PA highways in the winter time also does a major assist in shortening the life of highway surfaces. And it is impossible to measure the negative results the release of this stuff has on the environment – vegetation, water streams, etc.

D.E.R., where are you when we need you, or do you just turn your eyes the other way and pretend you don’t know what is happening?

But alas! I digress! The point of this little discussion, as the news media folk and politicians go all out to get a few sound bites in on the bridge issue, is to let you know there is one bridge in existence – and one bridge only which is absolutely trustworthy – it will not collapse, ever!

But you have to cross it by an intentional choice on your part, just as large numbers of persons chose to cross that bridge in Minneapolis day after day until it fell into the Mississippi River recently.

However, this bridge is not really a physical structure made of concrete and steel. It is spiritual and supported by the cross upon which Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died for us sinners. He bore our sins upon Himself and satisfied the demands of God’s justice completely on our behalf.

Sin must be and will be punished – either we bear that punishment or we make an arrangement whereby someone else takes the punishment for us! By honestly acknowledging that we are guilty of having sinned against God and our fellow human beings, sincerely repenting (turning away from our sins – quit practicing them) of our sins, asking God’s forgiveness, and by faith receiving Jesus Christ into our lives as Savior and Lord, we are forgiven and experience peace with God. There is clear recognition that our forgiveness is possible because Jesus died for our sins on the cross and was later resurrected from the dead.

The above illustration, crude as it may be, is an attempt to depict the fact that it is possible to abandon a life which leads us down a path to condemnation and destruction, and to get on the “bridge” of God’s grace and mercy, traveling to the other side where we are accepted as citizens of His eternal Kingdom!
Details of the experience of becoming a Christian as revealed in the holy Scriptures are given at How to Become a Christian A link at the bottom of that area will bring you back to this place.

So, the big question is this – have you crossed over on the “bridge” which assures you that you have been forgiven and Jesus is real in your life as Savior and Lord?

Only 2 persons really know the answer to that question – you and God!

Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."
--- Jude 1:14,15

Saturday, August 4, 2007

A Time When "Executive Privilege" Just Won't Cut It!



I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?" --- Revelation 6:12-17

Committee hearings are being held all over at a place called “Capitol Hill” in Washington D.C. There are senators who want to talk to some members of President Bush’s administration. Subpoenas have been issued to certain high profile people who are close to the president. One highly controversial issue is the firing of some U.S. attorneys and why it was done. So, the “invite” by means of a subpoena has been handed to certain high ranking officials to come and provide much wanted information about this extremely important matter.

Is the president cooperating? Hardly! He has invoked what is called “Executive Privilege” which means you can break the law and nothing can be done about it – this “protects” the persons who have the information (the real truth) about why those U.S. attorneys were fired. In effect Bush has said, “Don’t worry about that subpoena, you don’t have to appear and testify because I said you don’t have to – I’m the president and what I say settles it, even if it means thumbing my nose at the justice system!”

While it appears that the president will get away with this rebellious act in preventing certain members of the administration from telling what really went on and the real motives behind the firings, it won’t always be that way somewhere down the road in the future!

The problem with just about 100 per cent of world leaders is that they think they can make up their own rules and do whatever they want – justice, truth, honesty, etc. are ignored when it is not in their best interest to function with such honorable values.

It is quite obvious that accountability to the One Who put this universe together by spoken command and has revealed a code of laws to which every human is expected to comply is intentionally ignored. In place of that our world leaders seem infatuated with Frank Sinatra’s theme song, whether they know it or not, and practice it with fervent zeal – “I Did It My Way!”

Read again the dramatic change in the behavior of the powerful leaders of all nations when it dawns on them too late that they have made some very bad choices in exercising their power and now it is time to face the Judge of the entire human race:

I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?" --- Revelation 6:12-17

Now do you see why it is right on target to say that a time is coming when the feeble attempt to invoke “Executive Privilege” just won’t cut it. If any words are spoken at all in addition to what is already recorded, it will possibly be to some underling, “Come on – get that shovel moving faster – we’re in hot water and we need a deep hole in which to hide!”

....since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. --- 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10