When the foundations are being destroyed, what shall the righteous do? (Psalm 11)

The reason I have chosen to speak on this verse is lest we forget or overlook the way our faith is being marginalised, restricted, and attempts being made to drive it out of public life. To remind you that traditional teaching and principles of Christianity are being stealthily abandoned that will threaten our way of life.

When this Psalm 11 was written, David was passing through a bad time, when all he believed in seemed to be falling apart. David faced total disorder all around and saw only corruption and disorder. Something similar one might say to what is happening here now.

We are facing exactly the same situation that David was facing. We are witnessing an all-out assault to remove the foundations on which this country was founded.

Christianity has been the faith of this country for over 1500 years and its influence has kept the country as a stable nation, offering moral and social guidelines. We now face a systematic attack on this faith by ideologues in political circles to remove Christianity from public life; people who betray and dislike the culture which nurtured them and are placing restriction on Christian expression. Those foundations are being destroyed, for in this age of religious tolerance and pluralism we are told that no one religion should be considered to be of more influence. In effect, other faiths are shown more consideration.

A foundation of this country was a morality based upon the word of God, but since we have rejected the word of God, one person’s concept of what is right and wrong depends on what they wish to be. When such a situation exists, there is no consensus for determining what is right or wrong other than what is decided upon by a majority, or by those who wield the most political power.

The bedrock foundation of any society is a strong family, but our families are being destroyed because the Biblical concepts of children being raised by one biological father and mother, are no longer followed. On the whim of a Prime Minister obsessed with personal popularity, the traditional and biblical definition of marriage has been destroyed, and been replaced by a definition which is totally offensive to the biblical concept of a family.
Those who believe they cannot in religious conscience accept this legal change have even been denied the right to do so.

Religious assemblies (in State Schools) have been largely abolished; in some education establishments the Bible is seen as hate literature.
no longer is the Cross respected and permitted to be freely worn in public places as a symbol of faith, yet other faiths can wear and display what they will.
laws have been enacted in order to placate 1% of the population and prevent even Scriptural quotation from the other 99%.

A street preacher visiting from the United States was arrested in London and held in a police cell for seven hours for preaching from the New Testament. It seems that the influence of the minorities has become so powerful that criticism is forbidden, although criticism of Christianity is completely acceptable.

Another street preacher was answering (in private) a question a lady asked him; he was heard by a man listening in who reported him to the police, the preacher was arrested.

When such foundations are destroyed, it becomes hard for many people, and they fall apart. They feel the world has come to an end. They fall into deep despair and depression. What then do the followers of Jesus Christ do?

This is a very important question, because Christians are the only people who have the answer. In our politically correct society, it appears the power of evil is so great that people are afraid, even in danger, if they voice criticism; the righteous are not expected to speak, and if they do they are accused of some kind of phobia or bigotry.

Just because the world is crumbling and the social order is deteriorating, that does not absolve us of our responsibility to do all that we can to right the wrongs, to stand for the standards men and women fought and died for, and rebuild the foundations.

It is tempting in these days to give up on the world and everyone in it. Nevertheless, we must continue to teach and spread the word of God in a world that is hostile to it. We must live in such a way as to show others how right it is to live according to God’s word. Even if the judicial system becomes corrupt, and we have seen that Christians have little chance when it comes to claiming the right to express our beliefs, we have a responsibility to try to live according to the law of God. The world may follow the devil, but we still have the responsibility to keep ourselves unspotted from the world.

The Church is the only answer to this secular assault. The Lord stated he would build the Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. At times it seems as though some within the Church are saying and we will pull it down. The Lord still controls and works through it.

The Church is a wonderful organisation which has many members around the world, without distinction between rich/poor, young/old, race, colour or sex. Never minimize the power of the Church, it may be in decline in Britain and the West, but in Africa, South America and the East, it is immensely strong because they have not been dismantling the Bible. We can draw inspiration from them.

The Church however needs to get its act in order; to wake up and speak up and to do so with one voice. The faith and belief of the Church are built on two essential doctrines; salvation by grace through faith, and the full authority of Scripture. They may not be important to some, but they are fundamental to real Christians.

We are saved by the grace of God when we place our faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus paid it all for us on the Cross, we owe everything to Him. He is the only means of salvation; no one comes to the Father except through Jesus Christ.

The religious fashion now is multi-faith. Whilst all peoples must have the right to follow their own religion, we cannot join in worship with those who deny the uniqueness of Christ, and His being the Son of God.

God chose 40 men to write His Word,all except one being Jews of different occupations and with different personalities which God used and inspired to communicate His thoughts and commands. It is a divinely inspired Word and members of the Church should stop taking it apart to fit in with modern ideas and morality.

Such were the themes to Charles and John Wesley. Listen to the words of John Wesley. ‘I want to know one thing, the way to heaven, how to land on that happy shore. God has condescended to teach the way, He was written it down I a book. Give me that book at any price give me that book’. I fear both Wesleys would find a lot of preaching these days not to their liking.

Many Churches do not have Bible available for people to follow the readings, or sermon. In one Church I visited to take the service there wasn’t even a Bible to read the Lessons. All Christians need to read regularly so as to be able to discern false teaching.

You will never hear a Muslim saying the Koran must be re-interpreted to please society, or that it is in any part in error. When people turn away from what is written they lose their spiritual moorings and just drift ashore into the secular wilderness.

All Christians should be concerned at the way events are going. If Christianity is pushed out, the spiritual vacuum is likely to be filled with something far worse. The Bible states that Jesus is the only way to God, the only means of salvation because of His death on the Cross. We should not be fearful of saying this, otherwise people will not fully appreciate what we are here for, and to make this proclamation is the only reason for our existence; we must stand and say boldly, and not be afraid to do so even if it upsets some false teachers. Sadly, there are too many within the Church more anxious to promote their own ambitions and desires than to promote the gospel.

The Lord calls on each one of us to be steadfast in the faith, to remain true to His teaching and promises to Him; this applies to every Christian. Nowhere in the Bible do we find a particular standard for some Christians and a different one for others. Some may find the negative influences around us make it hard to live consistently for the Lord, but we are called to be steadfast and contend for the faith. Christianity is not just a philosophy you hear on Sundays, it has to be lived out daily. I fear some members have not just given up; they have given in and are following society’s ways rather than God’s. Society has developed a standard of morality which we cannot share.

Charles Wesley once stated that the manner of living as well as attending Church was important. I held a service in honour of this great man and the research I made caused me to realise how far the Church (in general) has moved from the ideals of Methodism, which once had such a profound effect on the spiritual health of the nation.

If there was ever a day when Christians need to know what they believe it is now. Unless we are sure as to what we believe and why we must live that way, we will not be able to defeat the spreads of secularism and the cultural trends which challenge our faith and the foundations on which this nation was built.

The great Methodist preacher of the last century, W E Sangster once said, ‘ preaching is in the darkness, the world doesn’t believe in it’ and this is more true now than when it was first said. The Church itself does not value preaching, it is not seen as important although it can be a source of learning. How can we get the gospel out if it is not taught?

When a new bishop was introduced recently, he stated his priority would be to tackle poverty, which is an amazing statement but so typical of to-day’s Church thinking, where bishops are acting like unelected politicians. Priority of all clergy should be Church growth.

Christians have often found themselves in those places where there is much hostility but they have not given up. They continue to struggle, to fight, to overcome in the name of Christ, and are still doing so bravely against immense provocation in non Christian lands where they find their Churches burned down, their homes attacked and themselves persecuted, beaten and even murdered.

What can the righteous do? They can do what that little band of Christians in the upper room did 2,000 years ago. They can turn the world upside down. There is hope if all members realise the time has passed when we sit back and say ‘God will provide’; we must remember He needs a little help from His friends. Let us proclaim the truth, however inconvenient it may prove to some people.

The Ten Commandments
I am going to be old fashioned and write about the Ten Commandments. Field Marshal Montgomery once said, ‘God spoke these words, and I agree with Him’.

Shortly after God brought the people of Israel out of Egypt, God called Moses to the top of Mount Sinai and gave him the Ten Commandments, which God intended to be the spiritual and moral absolutes for His people. They offer basic rules for behaviour; for guidance into an ordered life; Western nations have built their legal systems on them; society needs them to determine right and wrong. People will mutter ‘this is 2013, we don’t need some ancient words from the Bible to rule our lives’.

That is the view of many people, even some Christians, who say we don’t need rules and regulations. They were written thousands of years ago in a foreign land and don’t relate to our society. We don’t need to be told how to behave; all you need is common sense. Unfortunately sense is not very common

In Jewish homes children are taught the Commandments at an early age and learn them on their ten fingers. They are encouraged to observe them. Many parents these days have no time to spare for their children. Abraham Lincoln once stated, ‘the strength of the nation lies in the home’. If homes continue to break up, the threat to our nation will be as great as any other crisis; the nation needs a spiritual and moral reawakening.

There is also one essential requirement, they have to be enforced, which is why we are in such an awful state in this country. Police have given up enforcing many of our laws, and are under encouragement to do so, and indeed, on moral issues have been told specifically not to do so. Indeed, Police action has on several occasions been taken against those who are proclaiming the values of the Commandments by quoting Scripture, which offends a politically correct society and touches consciences.

Ours is a permissive society which doesn’t like authority and the Human Rights law takes precedence over God’s law. But just as loving parents want to protect their children from harm’s way, and human predators putting temptations in their path, so our heavenly Father wants to protect us from all evil and give us a balanced and happy life.

A big problem is that few people in today’s generation actually know the Commandments, even so called Christians. Young people have never been taught them and those that do know them see them as rather like an exam paper, try any four from ten. Test your knowledge and without cheating try and name them all. Or are considered as Ten Suggestions

How many times have I heard Billy Graham point out they are like a chain; when you break a link the chain is broken; when you break one Commandment, you break the lot. If you have a chain and a link breaks you don’t say ‘I have broken a link’, you say ‘I have broken the chain’, and the commandments are a chain. Break one and you have broken the lot

People do not like strict morality. Morality has been redefined to mean you can do anything provided you feel clear in your conscience. It is considered to be old fashioned to have religious instruction, but human nature doesn’t really change.
I am rather bemused when people start using the term old fashioned in a mocking manner. In our new fashioned society we have the highest number of abortions, the highest number of teenage pregnancies, the highest rate of alcoholism, the highest rate of unsociable behaviour in Europe. The only thing we are lowest in is Church attendance.

Schools (in the state sector)no longer teach Christianity as the country’s religion, often preferring to teach other faiths. They are taught all about sex from an early age and with particular emphasis now on alternative lifestyles. Consequently our children are growing up without knowing any spiritual or moral truths, but are full of sexual knowledge, often practised to cause much distress and social problems. They live in a world unable to distinguish between right and wrong.

The world in its misguided wisdom has decided to reject God’s authority and decide for ourselves how to behave. God’s laws recognise our duty to God, parents, society, property, marriage. and if they were generally obeyed there would be far less criminal, domestic and unsociable behaviour.

People once put faith in politics, but the politicians have shown us how they only look after themselves. No longer can we expect moral standards from them. Especially when we are told by a government minister we are a secular country and not entitled to make the Christian faith our standard of reference; when we have a Prime Minister who takes it upon himself to re-define marriage to canvass what he thinks will bring him a few more votes and produces anti-Christian legislation.

For too long the liberal intellectual establishment have influenced and guided society into the moral abyss. It is now time for the Church, and all Christians, to demand the kind of society God has laid down.

God spoke these words, and I agree with Him too.

The Church of England 2013 style

It was once stated that the Church of England was the nation’s treasure. In consideration of recent statements and events, the treasure is losing some of its value.

Last week the Church in Wales, the Welsh Anglican section, decided to appoint women as Bishops. The only surprise there was that it took them so long to do so. The Archbishop of Wales is also an arch liberal and made the astounding and somewhat arrogant pronouncement that it was ‘theologically correct’. The archbishop might have justified his questionable statement with theology, rather than I suspect his reliance on the (secular) Equality Act.

If we should approach this topic with the same intellectual approach that lawyers give to any controversial matter, we would have to come to the conclusion that nowhere in Scripture is there any grounds for the archbishop’s statement.

Jesus was supported financially in His ministry by women and by their devoted support. Jesus appointed Apostles and had the opportunity to appoint a woman, but did not. For two thousand years the Christian Church has not, and the majority still have not, appointed women. Is this not a fact to ponder on?

The usual response is to refer to the high place women attain in many occupations, and rightly so. The Church is not a secular organisation; it is to function in accordance with God’s Word, and as stated, that Word does not appoint women as leaders in the Church.

The Church of England will meet in November and will follow the same path as Wales has done, have no doubt; if the present voting system should not support it, the system will be changed. The Archbishop has signalled his determination to push it through.


Therefore if the Church is to act with integrity, it must come clean and say
‘we want to appoint women to be bishops. We know we are not
conforming to Scripture, but we do want to popular with society
so are substituting the Bible for the Equality and Diversity Act.
We have already conformed to the Act by sanctioning civil
partnerships so that we may in the near future appoint a man in a
same sex relationship to the office of bishop’.

I readily agree that (some) women speak with far more common sense and commitment than many men, and are more worthwhile to listen to, especially some American women I have heard; but we must decide whether the Church is to abandon Scripture or abide by it.

+++++++++++++++++++++

Congratulations to the new Bishop of Durham, Paul Butler.
Bishop Butler states his priority is going to be tackling poverty.

Silly me; I thought it might be preaching the gospel so that more people would attend Church.

Anti-Israel bias

When I compare the Evangelical movement in America with the same movement in Britain I wonder why there is such a different attitude to Israel.

In America there is very strong support for Israel led by prominent televisions personalities such as Pat Robertson and John Hagee. But in Britain we have national organisations and agencies showing open hostility to Israeli and all things Jewish.

It is worth remembering that we Christians worship the God of Israel; we read a Bible written (with one exception) by Jews; and we have a Jewish Saviour.

In recent times we have seen (and read about) Christian Aid holding a conference on ‘Peace and Justice in the Holy Land’, in which all the speakers are described by an independent commentator as being pro-Palestinian. Such a bias can hardly be fitting for a conference with a title using the word 'justice'. The attitudes and action of both sides should be fairly presented. This bias is often most noticeable on the BBC.

Greenbelt, which was once an evangelical festival but has since become more of an arts gathering, but still intimating a Christian basis, has now adopted a distinctly anti-Israel organisation.

The common criticisms are of Israeli aggression and persecution, and there is no doubt that Israel reacts strongly to attacks on its territory, but this is normally because rockets are first fired on them. Other factors to be considered, but are never mentioned by its opponents, are that whilst many people of Arab origin work in Israel, the number of Israelis who work in Palestinian land are few (if any).

The Jews are regularly criticised for seizing land. A very important fact totally overlooked is that the American President Clinton organised a conference with the then Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and the then Palestinian leader Yasser Arrafat. Barak agreed to the idea of East Jerusalem serving as the capital of the Palestinian territories, but having first accepted the deal, Arrafat later walked away from it.

In 1993 Israel ceded the territory of Gaza to the Palestine National Assembly following an agreement in Oslo, which was seen as a gesture of the desire for peace in the region. Sadly that has failed in the intention for there has been constant strife.

On 14th May 1948 the United Nations granted independence to Israel and the nation was born with its own distinctive ‘Star of David’ flag. This fulfilled Biblical prophecy that God would bring His people home at last. Ever since that time Israel has been under attack from hostile nations which surround this little country the size of Wales. The nation has faced overwhelming forces and against such odds has fought off enemies in two wars, which has resulted in a general consensus of opinion that God was certainly with them. Anyone who challenges this should study the recapture of the Golan Heights, which was an achievement beyond human endeavour alone.

Let us not forget, when the Jews returned to their biblical homeland, it was largely a swamp filled, untilled wasteland. Jewish settlers drained malaria infested swamps and made it a flourishing fruit and agricultural success, planting millions of trees. In the wider world Jews have excelled in science, medical research, finance, the arts, and have a record number of Nobel prizes.

There is at present a feature on the Christian Broadcasting Network in America on how Israel is excelling in new developments in technology, farming, agriculture and medicine, the benefits of which will be available to the world.

We must pray that both nations will strive to maintain a peace accord, but this can never happen if one party seeks to eliminate the other. It is in the interests of each nation’s population to accept each other’s right to exist, even if they find it hard to be amicable about it. How can life be pleasant for either nation if the threat of more violence is let loose on innocent people of each country?