Reformation
Tearing Down America
It’s been an interesting week of presidential announcements. Hillary Clinton tweeted her presidential run then gaffed badly that she’s “fought women and children all her life.” Maybe that was an honest statement if you consider her views on abortion.
Marco Rubio also jumped into the race as a fresh, young, and articulate US Senator. If either he or Ted Cruz is elected to our highest office, they will make history as the nation’s first Hispanic president.
We certainly need a fresh leader for a hopeful future—not a return or carry-over from the past. In fact the next president will face a daunting assignment.
Stopping the tearing down of America.
If the present administration has succeeded at anything, it has been to greatly accelerate the tearing down of a once great nation. Now that we are heading into the seventh year of the Obama administration, and he is no longer running for office, it much easier to look at the president’s record and understand what he really meant when he said he wanted to “fundamentally change America.”
I will not judge his heart. Only God knows it. But the Bible is very clear that people are “known by their fruits.” Based on that wise axiom, what is the actual legacy of the Barack Obama presidency?
Instead of America being built up, we are in the process of being torn down. From a polling standpoint, nothing indicates this more than the steady reading that 70% of Americans believe that we are going in the wrong direction and only 30% believe we are headed the right way. This statistic has held constant for the majority of the Obama years.
Regardless of his motivation or desires, this means that Americans believe that we are being “torn down” not “built up.”
How so?
Using a preacher’s method of a three-point sermon where the words all start with the same first letter, let’s look at three critical areas of American life that the current administration is inadvertently or consciously tearing down.
Moral Tear Down
As a spiritual leader, this one is the most important to me because morality, which comes primarily from faith in God, leads to freedom or liberty which in turn brings blessing to a family, neighborhood, city of nation.
The Obama Administration has been the greatest accelerator of immorality in the history of our country, and that’s probably for two reasons: 1) Barack Obama was elected at time when powerful immoral forces in this nation were gaining momentum in the culture, and 2) Our president is primarily a secular man who pays lip service to biblical faith, but actively promotes secular values.
Now that the election gig is over, and he is free to be himself, we are witnessing a breathtaking assault on the traditional biblical values that made America unique in world history. The tearing down includes:
- The assault on children via abortion. Barack Obama is only the third president in all of American history who is pro-abortion, and the only one who radically championed late term abortions while in the Illinois Senate. Baby-killing has become passé and even applauded during the Obama years. Hillary Clinton, beholden to NARAL and Emily’s List, would do the same.
- The destruction of the five thousand year biblical covenant of marriage—the only American president to do so after he lied about changing his mind. In the Clinton roll-out video, she jumped on the same theme—which will further destroy the nuclear family in America.
- The failure of our nation’s first black president to mobilize the black community to rebuild the African-American family. This is such a tragic loss. Barack Obama could have been the man to call black dads home and encourage African American women to avoid pregnancy without marriage. Instead, he played the race card for years while black families disintegrate at mind-numbing speed.
- Opening our porous southern border for criminals, gangs, terrorists, and even unattended children simply for the sake of gaining Democratic votes. Immigration chaos is truly a moral issue that is destroying the social fabric of many cities and states.
Monetary Tear Down
The crony capitalist redistributive policies of the current Administration have soared the national debt to over eighteen TRILLION dollars, failed to create good wage jobs in a sputtering economy, and placed put a huge regulatory drag on the United States economy.
Obamacare is not only a health care disaster, but a huge noose on families, businesses, invention and innovation—and one of the most deceptive taxes ever foisted on the American people. And its enforcement agents are the hated IRS.
Barack Obama is primarily a statist who does not believe in liberty and free markets. His environmental policies torpedoed the Keystone Pipeline for no good reason and have not allowed America to become energy independent—a crucial position to hold in the 21st century. Instead, hopes of windmills and failed electric cars have put the brakes on one of our country’s most dynamic sectors—the new fossil-fuel explosion. All that’s been “renewed” in America has been our dependency on foreign oil and loss of clean coal jobs.
At best, America is treading water as we head toward a debt cliff. At worst, we are speeding toward the greatest economy collapse in the history of the world—driven by a man who little about lean budgeting, judicious use of debt and job creation.
Military Tear Down
Maybe the most glaring tear down of American society that has occurred under the Obama watch has been down-sizing and demoralizing of the United States military. Though the Bush invasion of Iraq can be argued both ways, no one can argue that when George Bush left office, Iraq was stable, our US forces were extended but strong, and the most volatile part of the world, the Middle East, was under control.
Not anymore. The Middle East is burning and in turmoil:
- Barack Obama failed to support the freedom movement in Iran in 2009. Now we are pushed around by genocidal and terror-supporting ayatollahs and are on the verge of allowing the world’s most powerful terrorist state to develop a nuclear weapon. If you were committed to ushering in Armageddon or World War III, there is no more helpful thing you could be doing right now than being taken to the cleaners by Iranian diplomats.
- With Hillary Clinton’s approval, we toppled the Gadaffi government in Libya, allowed our ambassador to be killed, and now chaos reigns in that nation.
- We said that Yemen was a “model” of our policy to reform the Middle East, and now it looks more like the Middle Ages than a stable part of the Middle East.
- Hundreds of thousands of people have died and been displaced in Syria and Iraq. By bringing our troops home too early, we released the draconian serpent of Isis to behead Christians and quickly become the new Nazis on the planet.
- We antagonized our friends (Israel) and have emboldened our enemies (Jihadists).
- Our American military is said to be at the lowest point of morale in a generation due to our feckless policies of appeasement, experimenting with sexual rights on the battle field, and telling our courageous chaplains to stop talking about God.
Morally, monetarily, and militarily the American nation is being systematically torn down. It would be easy to blame that breakdown on our leaders at the top. There’s just one problem.
We voted for them–twice.
It’s time to pray. It’s time to repent. It’s time to choose new leadership that will build up our nation, not tear it down.
The Half Truths That Fuel Islam and the Way to Reform It
Take a moment and think about how a lie works.
Most lies are not brazen rejections of truth. If they were, they would be easily rejected by most people’s common sense.
No, the power of a lie is that it usually takes a half truth (which draws you in) and then mix it with error.
That’s what the serpent did when he lured Adam and Eve into the Fall. He said something that was true (“knowing good and evil”) and wrapped it with an untruth (“You certainly won’t die!”). They bought that lie and the world was changed (Genesis 3:1-6)
Islam is also based on a number of half truths. Therein lies its power and attraction.
How can it be reformed?
My new book–The River of God–which should be out this year, has some detailed chapters on both the history and principles of the religion of Islam. The research included reading the Koran all the way through for the second time in my life.
This made it clear to me why so many people–1.2 billion–have been drawn into the “tent” of this monotheistic faith. Islam is built on a number of half truths, which seen by themselves, can be quite convincing. This is especially true of the jihadist version which is gaining momentum and converts in various parts of the world.
We all know that radical Islam is exploding in the Middle East. The White House recently convened a summit of Muslim leaders to discuss that topic and what to do about it. Some believe that Islam can be reformed and that the attraction of it can be changed.
But how?
This can only be done through exposing the half truths upon which this religious/political force rests and calling people out into the light.
So what are the half truths upon which the House of Islam stands? I only have space to mention a few:
1. There is only one God and his name is Allah.
Yes, it is true that there is only one True God who made the heavens and the earth. It is also true that “Allah” is a generic term for the Supreme Deity just as in English we used the term “God” or in Spanish they have “Dios.”
So far so good. There is only one God and he should be worshipped.
But the “Allah” of the Koran is a warring God who condones the killing of innocents to advance his worship. He is arbitrary, cannot be known, a single entity and distant to mankind. All those traits are lies.
The real “Allah” is none of the above. His moral essence is love, his Being is Triune (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), and he is knowable and personal to those who come into an intimate relationship with Him.
2. Mohammed is his prophet.
Mohammed of Arabia was a religious man and a very strong leader. He spoke against the gross idolatry of his time and called his followers to worship the only God. That part is true.
But he was not a true prophet of God as evidenced by the errors, mistakes and distortions in the Koran. Actually, he was a marauding thief who stole from others for a living and justified the use of violence for his own purposes. He was a grossly immoral man and possibly a pedophile. He is not worthy of following or emulating.
3. Submission to God is the way of life.
Islam means “submission” and the message of the jihadists is that people need to submit their lives to God. So far, so good. The Bible teaches a similar truth that salvation comes when we submit our wills in faith to the God who loves us and died for our sins.
Islam leaves out that last sentence. Submission in Islam is to a warring and vengeful Being and the means of submission can include coercion, tribute, and death to those who refuse.
That part is the lie. True submission to God is voluntary, prompted by God and motivated by love. It is never forced or true love is not involved.
4. Jesus is a major Prophet who will return one day.
Jesus the Messiah is mentioned prominently in the Koran. Many truths are stated about him including his virgin birth, his ability to do miracles, and his Second Coming. In fact, Isa (Jesus in Arabic) is one of the most frequent figures mentioned in the recitations of Mohammed.
However, the most crucial things about Jesus Christ are left out of the Islamic writings. Muslims are told that Jesus was not the Son of God, he did not die on the cross of the sins of the world, and that he is not the King of kings and Lord of Lords who will be revealed at his Second Advent.
These omissions make the Muslim concept of Jesus a lie. To them, he is not “the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6).
He is. (I AM)
5. God’s Kingdom will be global and all people will worship Him.
One of the great draws of Islam is its global vision of conquering the world. Muslims have a view of a changed and worshipping planet that ushers in a new era that includes the return of Jesus.
In this sense, Muslims are true progressives. The world is progressing toward the universal rule of God.
However, the means to get there–violence and death to all non-believers–is a Satanic lie. Yes, God’s kingdom is growing in all the earth but it is doing so through loving persuasion and mercy, not cruel beheadings, burning people alive, and raping young girls.
This fruit of Islam reveals its origins–the pit of hell. But its drawing power lies in the vision of a worldwide caliphate and eventual Heavenly kingdom.
There are other half truths in Islam that could be mentioned. But these five give you are idea of the power of this false religion. When you call people to submit to God, mention Jesus, share vision for a world wide kingdom and promise heaven for martyrs, that’s powerful stuff. In fact, compared to the emptiness and bankruptcy of immoral Western culture, it actually looks quite attractive.
No wonder thousands are joining the global jihad and even Western women are leaving their families to become “jidahi brides.” The power of Islamic vision is, in many ways, more potent than the decadent West.
But it is based on a lie (many half truths).
On the other hand, some Islamic ideas are full lies, not even half baked. Here are two examples.
The Koran completely leaves out the concept of blood sacrifice needed to atone for sin. Since the dawn of time, fallen human beings have been aware of their guilt (sin), and known that something else dying in our place is essential to repentance and forgiveness. The Koran is completely silent on this subject as if sin didn’t exist and sacrifice is not necessary.
The Bible teaches us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22). The greatest loving act of all time and eternity is the Son of God dying on the cross for the sins of the world (John 3:16).
The truth contains Good News! Islam is silent on how salvation has been achieved.
Another completel lie of Islam is the place it gives to women. They are treated as property and second-class citizens, not allowed to be educated, and have no real hope of heaven. That is hideous and false. All women and men are made in God’s image and co-heirs of the grace of life (1 Peter 3:7).
So how can Islam be reformed?
I believe it can be done through the following actions:
1. Freedom-loving nations must mobilize and defeat the jihadists just as they did the Nazis in WWII. We need to pray for modern Roosevelts and Churchills to replace the present-day Chamberlains that are too ignorant or timid to defeat evil.
2. We need to care for people entrapped in the Islamic lie, convince them of the truth about God, and see them converted into his kingdom of light and love.
3. We must convince individual Muslims and whole Islamic nations that Isa, not Mohammed, is the only one worth trusting and emulating.
4. We must bring the Muslim world to trust the Bible and reject the Koran and sharia law.
5. We must shout on the housetops that the True Allah is the Loving Triune God!
6. We need to demonstrate that men and women can only be saved through faith in Isa, and not by their good works.
7. We must liberate Muslim women through a message of equality and dignity that is found in Christ.
8. We must call all Muslims to humble submission to the God who loved them enough to die for their sins.
Reforming Islam is a tall order. The half truths must be shredded and the whole truth proclaimed.
But in the coming days and years it can be done through the grace and power of Isa the Messiah.
The Gods of the Western World and Where They Are Leading Us
A few years ago I had the privilege of traveling around the USA speaking in Revive America Seminars as a part of the Impact World Tour.
One of my messages was on the subject of idolatry–something we don’t think much about in the Western World because we associate idols with altars and statues.
One Sunday in Hastings, Nebraska (it happened to be Super Bowl Sunday), I gave a message on idolatry which led to hours of repentance and confession. Many pastors even came forward to admit to their people that they’d gotten swept up in the sin of idolatry.
So what are the gods of the Western World and where are they leading us? How do I know if I’m personally involved in modern forms of idolatry?
Five thousand years of recorded human history reveal mankind’s penchant for worshipping idols or false gods:
- The Sumerians of ancient Mesopotamia are the world’s first recorded civilization (at least 2800 B.C.). Each Sumerian city was ruled by local priests who sacrificed to the gods of nature (sun, moon, rivers) and also fertility (Ishtar).
- The Egyptians were famous for their statues to the sun god (Ra) and numerous other deities. In fact, nearly all of God’s judgments upon Egypt during the Exodus were judgments against their idolatrous worship of false gods (Exodus 8-14).
- The Greek and Roman Empires ruled the known world from the ninth century B.C. to the 5th century AD. The Greek historian Herodotus (c.484-425 BC) claimed that the gods of the Greeks had been adopted from Egypt, and many modern scholars agree. Classical scholar C. Kerenyi lists 370 Greek gods that might have gone by 646 names.
- During their zenith, the Romans accepted and expanded the Greek pantheon. This led the Apostle Paul, sharing the Good News of Jesus in Roman-occupied Athens around 60 AD, to remark: “I notice that you are very religious” (Acts 17: 22). He was talking about idol worship.
- The Mayas and Aztecs, as reported by Father Bernardino de Sanhagun in the Florentine Codex, worshipped the forces of nature and supernatural and human counterparts. What stunned the Spaniards upon their arrival in the New World were the immense ritual slaughters that were taking place—human sacrifice—at regular festivals averaging 2,000 victims a day, and on special occasions, exceeding 20,000.
Those are a few glimpses of ancient idol worship. Gods and idols everywhere and even gross human suicide/murders to the idols of the day.
There is still a plethora of ancient idol worship in the modern world, especially in Africa (animism) and Asia. “Folk Hinduism” lives up to its reputation as one of the world’s largest idol-worshipping religions involving possibly 330 million gods. (That’s nearly one for every three people in India.)
John Noss explains how it works in many parts of the sub-continent:
“The ordinary villager, who in his everyday life takes no thought for the morrow of a subsequent existence, is content to worship the village gods to whom he looks for rain, bountiful harvests, and escape from plague…There are, as it were, two religions: a work-a-day religion to meet the requirements of everyday existence and a higher religion…which the ordinary man does not attempt to understand.”
I’ve been to many Hindu and Buddhist temples in that part of the world. Hundreds of millions of people in the 21st century still bow before idols and offer incense and food offerings to the gods.
Idolatry is both ancient and modern.
Here’s an important point to ponder: Human beings are the only part of creation that worships or creates idols. Land animals don’t make idols. Sea creatures don’t worship idols. No other part of animate or inanimate creation give themselves in love and devotion to gods.
Only humans.
It’s as if we were uniquely made to worship someone or something.
The Bible tells us this Someone is not the sun, moon and stars, or any part of the created world. We were designed to worship the True God who made it all. He is our Creator and also our Savior (from sin).
This brings us to the fundamental definition of idolatry: Giving supreme time, attention and affection to anything that takes the place of God.
Human beings were created with a God-shaped vacuum inside. We can either give God his rightful place in our hearts and lives (Matthew 22:37-40) or we can fill that space with other things.
Idols.
In the Western World, under the guise of science and progress, most people do not worship ancient gods and idols. Most of us don’t frequent temples and burn incense nor do we bow to pieces of wood.
But because man will worship, we have our own set of gods or idols.
One New Testament verse is the key to understanding the idols of the Western world– 1 John 2:15-17:
“Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts. But the one who does the will of God abides forever.”
“Do not love…the things in the world.” In other words, worldly things. That’s the definition of secular–being worldly rather than spiritual minded.
Polytheistic religions like Hinduism, Buddhism and animism produce “spiritual” idols or false gods. The religion of atheism or secularism doesn’t tout spiritual things, but because of the God-shaped vaccuum in every human heart, worldly people are driven toward secular idols or gods.
Let’s call it secular idolatry. The West is full of it–and according to 1 John 2:15-17, I believe the secular idols of the West center around three (though there are many more).
1. The Idol of Sex (lust of the flesh)
Can anyone honestly deny that sex in all its forms is one of the supreme obsessions of worldly people? It is a multi-billion dollar industry on the Web and nearly half of American men admit to being addicted to pornography. What are the supermarket tabloids luring you towards? What is becoming increasingly mainstream on television and in the movies?
Sex. This secular idol’s primary “temple” is the movie theater with supermodels and movie stars being the temple prostitutes. Of course, it’s not a new form of idolatry. The Greek and Roman bathhouses were full of fornication, homosexuality and adultery during their day and a significant number of Roman citizens were bi-sexual. As pointed out by Bill O’Reilly in his best-selling book Killing Jesus, Julius Caesar was the poster child of sexual indulgence with homosexual escapades and numerous adulteries (e.g. Cleopatra).
Secularists fill their God-void by “lusting after the flesh.” Erotica is a primary god in current Western civilization.
2. The Idol of Entertainment (the lust of the eyes)
The second Western secular idol is the god of entertainment which primarily involves the eyes. We have gone from being a “giving” culture (Judeo-Christian) to a “getting” mentality which focuses on pleasure. 2 Timothy 3:1-14 says that worldly people are “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”
Pleasure comes in many forms, but entertainment is high on the list. People want to “feel good” and being entertained fits the bill in many forms including music, television, movies, and sports.
In fact, probably the most obvious temples to modern gods in the West are sports stadiums and rock concert halls.
I remember when Christians used to be called “fanatics” and sports people were “fans.” (Obviously, the first label is worse than the second.) Today, it’s reversed. Look at the people in most sports stadiums on Sundays and you will see people that really love their gods (fanatics). They wear special costumes, dye their hair, paint their faces, and shout their lungs out.
If only Western churchgoers (fans?) had such passion for the True God.
3. The Idol of Money (the boastful pride of life)
The final idol of the Secular Trinity is the one that makes everything possible–wealth or money. If personal pleasure rather than pleasing God is the emergent god of the West, then money is the ticket to its fulfillment.
Money is the substance which allows us to boast about our lives. We are keeping up with the Joneses! We have made it because we have a good job which makes us look good and provides wealth to purchase the “things” that make us happy.
Money is the new American Dream. Tony Campolo amplifies: “We want more and more of what we need less and less of.” It’s what most Westerners live for–a comfortable lifestyle fueled by wealth that allows them to pursue hedonistic pursuits.
Generations ago American towns and cities were built around churches i.e. the centrality of worship to God. The cathedrals of today are not churches (they’ve been buried by the skyscrapers). They are shopping malls, areas of commerce, and high-rise temples of Wall Street finance.
And you thought that Europe and America had become irreligious? Abandoned all gods?
Nope. People will worship. It’s just that the gods have changed. They’re not made of wood or stone. They’re made of flesh, celluloid and paper and we lust after them with our bodies, eyes, and bank accounts.
Of course, it their proper place, all these things are fine. Sex is wonderful in a godly marriage; We all need some restful entertainment at times; Money can be used to serve God and bless people. But when these things become supreme desires, affections, and time wasters, they turn from being tools into idols.
The Super Bowl is a great example of Western idol worship. You have great athleticism (entertainment), promoted by by scantily-clad cheerleaders (sex), raking in billions of dollars in advertising (money). No wonder it’s the most watched Western TV extravaganza each year.
All three Western idols are involved.
One of the clearest truths of the Bible is that God judges all false gods or idols. He doesn’t want people to hurt themselves by worshipping things that don’t satisfy them or bring Him glory.
And where are the idols of the Western World leading us?
- Consuming sexual lust is multiplying venereal diseases and destroying the family unit.
- The opiate of entertainment is making us fat, passive and uninformed.
- The love of money is leading us to a debt-laden financial collapse of biblical proportions.
What must we do?
The book of 1 John ends with these words (1 John 5:21): “Little children, guard yourselves from idols.”
That includes Western ones.