TESTIMONY OF THE AUTHOR OF ARAB SPRING CHRISTIAN WINTER

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How to Build a Faith That Will Withstand Any Persecution

I will close this book with a few words of hopeful wisdom to help you in case you are terrified of the future and wonder if you will be able to withstand the difficult days ahead. I do not claim in any way that I have a monopoly on how to build a solid Christian life, or some special secret to achieve rapid maturity, an oxymoron in itself. It would be impossible for you to have the same huge host of people build into your life that have built into mine. I’m very sorry for those of you who have had few, if any, people pour into your life by spending time with you, praying with and for you, and guiding your growth as a Christian. I have been hugely blessed in this regard. Because of that godly input over many years and forty-plus years of walking with the Lord, I have a few ideas on how to build an unshakeable faith. People often ask me if I have doubted my faith while serving the Lord abroad in overwhelmingly Muslim communities. My answer is always “No. Being the only Christian for miles around actually builds my faith stronger.” That is because I continually see the vivid contrast between the reality of Christianity and the Holy Spirit within us, and the deadness of religion, even one that calls for extremely high commitment. As I’ve said many times before in print and in person, ONLY the Holy Spirit can change a life, no one else. That’s the primary, on-the-ground difference between Christianity and every other faith out there. The longer you are among those other faiths, even as you find elements worthy of admiration in them, you will understand that none of them actually change the heart.

So let’s take a brief look at a few steps you can consider to build a faith that will remain true and strong, even if Islamists order you to forsake it. ​1. ​Get Into a Small Group(s). There is absolutely no need to build a strong faith through your own effort, gutting out daily Bible reading, going to church whenever you can, and trying to pray for longer and longer amounts of time each day. The modern, Western thought that we can walk with Jesus but not follow any “organized religion” is wrongheaded. This type of Lone Ranger Christianity is nowhere to be found in God’s Word. It is a Western, individualistic interpretation of a faith that grew out of small groups, as we see all over the Book of Acts. I am saying clearly that you cannot grow the type of faith you will need in the End Times by watching sermons on television or online and staying in your own home with no regular contact with other Christians. The Church will never stand strong if it’s built on survivalists who move as far away from others as they can and practice an isolationist Christianity. You should not want to dive into body life simply because it is commanded. You should do it because it is enjoyable and a necessary part of your growth. We all need that sharpening from one another, as Proverbs 27:17 says, As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

The author of the book Arab Spring Christian Winter – Islam Unleashed on the Church and the World, Ralph Stice has spent many years living, working, and ministering in Muslim countries. His time in Turkey (seat of the former Ottoman Empire) has led him to the same conclusion as Joel Richardson author of The Mid East Beast – The Scriptural Case for an Islamic Antichrist.

THE NEW MORALITY

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Every step a nation takes to accept the “new morality” (everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes) is matched by an equal step to reject God and His ways. What was once seen as the source of virtue, freedom, and joy is now viewed as a hindrance, a restraint, as being oppressed.

“For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.“ Romans 8:7

“Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord.” Jeremiah 17:5-7

“You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes,” Deuteronomy 12:8

Though the seeds of America’s turning from God can be found in earlier days with the introduction of evolution into the school curriculum, it would become most noticeable and would achieve critical mass in the 1960s. It was at the beginning of that decade that America removed prayer from its public schools. The act was soon followed by the banning of God’s Word from the instruction of the nation’s children. The Bible had always been part of the American public school system, from its beginnings at Massachusetts Bay. Thus the change was a monumental one—and with regard to the spirit of Baal (The Possessor), a strategic one.

When Baal was unable to possess one generation of Israelites, he would focus on the next—the nation’s children. Since children represent the future, if he could take hold of America’s children, he could take hold of America. So by removing prayer and the Word from the education of America’s children, he was weakening the transmission of faith to the next generation. He could then separate the entire nation from prayer, from the Word, and from faith. By causing God’s ways to become alien to the nation’s children, he could cause the alienation of America from God.

Baal’s American agenda was not limited to its school system. It would permeate every sphere of American culture. Its major newspapers would no longer publish summations of the past Sunday sermons, its leading magazines would no longer endorse Christian values, its entertainment would no longer uphold biblical morality, its politicians would speak less openly of Christian values, and its television stations would no longer promote prayer or present the ways of God in a positive light but would now war against them. Praying to God or mentioning the name of Jesus in the public square would be increasingly viewed with hostility.

The Ten Commandments and the Law were also at the foundation of Western civilization. In the case of America, they were specifically cited as the cornerstone on which the new society was to be built. So for Baal to gain possession of America, he would do just as he did to ancient Israel. He would cause them to put away the Ten Commandments and depart from the ways of God. So in 1980 the Supreme Court ruled that it was no longer legal to display the Ten Commandments in public schools. They were what the American school system had once taught and lifted up as the nation’s moral foundation. Now it was illegal to even make them visible in public.

All of this concerted action by Satan and his demons demonstrates that spiritual warfare is intense and strategic and unless Christians are led by the Holy Spirit our efforts will never be effective.

In “The Return of the Gods”, Jonathan Cahn takes the reader on a journey from an ancient parable, the ancient inscriptions in Sumer, Assyria, and Babylonia that become the puzzle pieces behind what is taking place in our world to this day, specifically in America. Is it possible that what we in the modern world take as nothing more than ancient mythology could actually possess a reality beyond our fathoming?

Who is the Possessor?  The Enchanter? The Destroyer? The Dark Trinity. Get Jonathan’s book. You will be glad you did.

Could a sign that has appeared all over America and the world be linked to the gods of Mesopotamia?  And if so, what does it actually mean?

Is it possible that the gods (demonic spirits) lie behind everything from what appears on our computer monitors, our televisions, and movie screens; to the lessons given in our classrooms; to the breakdown of the family; to wokism; to the occult; to our addictions; to the Supreme Court; to cancel culture; to children’s cartoons; to every force and factor that has transformed the parameters of gender; to that which appears in our stores, on our T-shirts, and on our coffee mugs—to that which is, at this very moment, transforming America and much of the world?  Is it possible that behind all these things are ancient mysteries that go back to the Middle East and ancient Mesopotamia? This and so much more is uncovered by Jonathan in Return of the Gods.

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ONLY EIGHT PEOPLE SURVIVED GOD’S FIRST JUDGEMENT HOW MANY WILL SURVIVE HIS COMING JUDGEMENT?

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The vast majority of Americans, 96%, do not hold to a biblical worldview following the COVID-19 lockdowns, according to a new survey. Calling it a “significant change” in Americans’ worldview, the Cultural Research Centre of Arizona Christian University led by researcher George Barna found in its survey that the lockdowns impacted the already-dwindling number of people who claim to hold a biblical worldview.

A biblical worldview is one in which the entirety of a person’s “ideas about all dimensions of life and eternity are based on biblical principles and commands.” The data, which was part of a survey that began in 2020 known as the American Worldview Inventory (AWVI), which evaluates the worldview of the U.S. adult population, also found the pandemic fuelled a decline in biblical worldview even among those who identify as born-again Christians, from 19% pre-pandemic to 13% post-pandemic.

We should not be surprised at this great falling away from God and His commands, Jesus told us that this would be the state of the world prior to His second coming.

“What will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? And Jesus answered them: ‘See that no one leads you astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. And you will hear of wars and rumours of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for this must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are but the beginning of the birth pains. Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold.‘” Matthew 24:3-12

The Biblical prophesied end times signs are being manifested in our day. But, it is only those that hold a Biblical worldview (4% in the USA) that will know the truth that we are in end times and that the judgement of God is imminent for those that reject Him and His Word.

Only eight people survived the first time God poured out His wrath upon an unbelieving lawless world (Worldwide flood of Noah’s day) and sadly we know many will be destroyed during the Biblical prophesied wrath to come.

SEVEN TRUMPET JUDGEMENTS (Revelation 9)

“Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet… So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released to kill a third of mankind… The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshipping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.“ Revelation 9:13,15, 20-21

SEVEN BOWL JUDGEMENTS (Revelation 16)

“Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.” Revelation 16:1

“The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.” Revelation 16:17-21

END TIMES FAMINES AND PESTILENCES

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Right now, farmers across the world can’t get enough fertilizer for their crops…

According to Bloomberg:

“Expensive fertilizers are just one of many factors that have driven food prices to a record. In response, rice farmers across Asia are scaling back usage of the nutrients, threatening harvests of a staple that feeds half the world. The repercussions could be huge: The International Rice Research Institute predicts that yields could drop 10% in the next season, causing a loss of 36 million tons of rice, or the equivalent of feeding 500 million people.”

In the Olivet Discourse Jesus gave us many signs that would precede His second coming and famines were a significant sign mentioned in the three gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke.

“For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.” Mark 13:8 & Matthew 24:7

“Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven. But before all this, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you,” Luke 21:10-12

Famine knocking at the door of 41 million worldwide, World Food Programme (WFP) warns

WFP said 584,000 people are already experiencing famine-like conditions in Ethiopia, Madagascar, South Sudan and Yemen.   

Nigeria and Burkina Faso are also of particular concern as they have pockets where famine-like conditions are present. 

“In Somalia in 2011, 260,000 people died of hunger – and by the time the famine was actually declared – half of that number had already died,” Mr. Beasley of WFP recalled. “We can’t debate the numbers to death when people need our help now.” 

Yemen, South Sudan and northern Nigeria top the list of the 20 countries, and are facing catastrophic levels of acute hunger.  Some families in areas in South Sudan and Yemen are already experiencing starvation and death, or are at risk of starvation. 

While most of the affected countries are in Africa, the report said hunger is set to rise steeply in most regions of the world. 

TRANSGENDER SURGERY FOR CHILDREN

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Is the following good news an indicator that the world is turning back to God’s values? Sadly, God’s Word, the Bible tells us that godlessness and lawlessness will increase as we approach the time of Jesus’ Second Coming. God has given us at least 1800 prophecies of His return to earth, first to raise the dead in Christ and then to rapture believers to heaven before God pours out His wrath upon an unrepentant world.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced on Monday that he has implemented an emergency regulation imposing what his office calls “guardrails” on gender transition interventions for minors as the push to ban the controversial practices continues on a state-by-state basis. “Even Europe recognizes that mutilating children for the sake of a woke, leftist agenda has irreversible consequences, and countries like Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom have all sharply curtailed these procedures,”

The new regulation “clarifies that state law already prohibits performing experimental procedures in the absence of specific guardrails” and requires medical professionals to inform patients that the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones “is experimental and is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)” and that “the FDA has issued a warning that puberty blockers can lead to brain swelling and blindness.” Bailey’s office says the move was necessary “due to the skyrocketing number of gender transition interventions despite rising concerns in the medical community that these procedures are experimental and lack clinical evidence of safety or success.”

Despite this information, the LGBTQ agenda is being promoted and adopted widely

Dylan Mulvaney appeared on the Drew Barrymore Show Monday imparting wisdom to fellow transgender people just starting their “gender journey,” and encouraging parents of so-called “trans kids” to support their confused children in their belief that they are members of the opposite sex.

At one point, Barrymore, one of the most famous women in the world, kneeled before Mulvaney in a gushing display of deference to the male who shot to fame performing an over-the-top ditsy-woman persona in the TikTok series 100 Days of Girlhood.

Trans activists like Dylan Mulvaney, whose painfully offensive internet content shows each day of his life of “girlhood” using outdated female stereotypes, may merit our compassion and an invitation to redemption — but Barrymore’s behavior was more akin to worship. She appeared to wholeheartedly celebrate everything that Dylan falsely proclaims himself to be, perpetuating the same façade that both she and everyone watching knew to be a lie.

Contrary to Barrymore’s example, in a culture where the existence and privacy of women are increasingly thrust into question by transgender ideology, it is more important than ever that women stick together in defending the dignity of our sex against those who parody it in the public square.

In a similar act of kneeling to transgender ideology, Wellesley College made headlines this week due to a student referendum that supported welcoming all transgender and so-called nonbinary-identifying students to the traditionally all-female institution. If adopted, this change would mark a significant departure from the original intention of the school, which was founded in 1875 with the goal of expanding higher education opportunities to women; notably, Ivy League universities didn’t accept female students until they began in the late 1960s. In more recent years, women’s colleges have offered young women an oasis of privacy, particularly for students with a prior history of sexual trauma and a desire to minimize the risk of suffering the all-too-common experience of campus sexual assault.

This is clear evidence we are living in the last days before Jesus returns to set up His millennial reign on this earth. As I mentioned before, there are more than 1800 Bible references to Jesus’ second coming so know it is next on God’s agenda for this earth. If you want to know more about what is coming next for this planet go to http://www.millennialkingdom.net.

“They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4-6

GODLESSNESS IN THE LAST DAYS – Part 2

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Conservative judge ‘predictably’ shouted down by university students at Stanford Law School


Stanford Law School’s website touts its “collegial culture” in which “collaboration and the open exchange of ideas are essential to life and learning.” Then there’s the culture Justice Stuart Kyle Duncan experienced when he visited Stanford last week. He had been invited by the student chapter of the Federalist Society to discuss the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, on which he had served since 2018. He has spoken at law schools across the country, and he was glad to accept this invitation. One of his first clerks graduated from Stanford. He also has friends on the faculty. He gave a talk there a few years ago and found it a warm and engaging place, but not this time.

When he arrived, the walls were festooned with posters denouncing him for crimes against women, gays, blacks, and “trans people.” Plastered everywhere were photos of the students who had invited him and fliers declaring “You should be ASHAMED,” with the last word in large red capital letters and a horror-movie font. This didn’t seem “collegial.” Walking to the building where he would deliver his talk, there was loud chanting a good 50 yards away, reminiscent of a tent revival in its intensity. Some 100 students were massed outside the classroom as he entered, faces painted every colour of the rainbow, waving signs and banners, jeering and stamping and howling. As he entered the classroom, one protester screamed: “We hope your daughters get raped!”

What Stuart Duncan experienced is mild by comparison with what persecution lies ahead for followers of Jesus Christ prior to His return to earth to rule and reign with the resurrected Saints for 1000 years. Jesus’ coming Millennial Kingdom is a transition period when Jesus will rule the nations from a new Jerusalem to fulfill the covenant God made with Abraham and all the Biblical prophecies made by the O.T prophets and the N.T apostles.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away, betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14

“But understand this, that in the last days, there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5

“They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4-6

GODLESSNESS IN THE LAST DAYS – Part 1.

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Violence, School Refusal, and Teacher Shortages Fuel Principals’ Stress

In Australia, in Government schools, more than a third of principals were attacked by students or parents in 2018

THE AUSTRALIAN

  • By Natasha Bita  Education Editor @natasha_bita
  • 20 March, 2023
  • 156 Comments including this comment:  We commenced a Christian School in our city in the early 80’s knowing what was ahead with the secular humanist pagan state school system. Sadly our decision has been confirmed as the “blackboard jungle” is now out of control.

Violent parents, suicidal students, and teacher shortages are pushing stressed school principals to quit at record rates, a survey of nearly 2500 Australian school leaders reveals.

At least 44 percent of principals were victims of physical ­violence last year – the highest level since the Australian Catholic University began its annual Australian Principal Occupational Health, Safety, and Wellbeing Survey in 2011.

School leaders are now 11 times more at risk of experiencing physical violence at work than the general population.

Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said the findings were “alarming’’.

For Christians who understand that God is in control of all that happens on His earth, this does not take us by surprise. Why? Because God has told us beforehand in His Word, the Bible that lawlessness will abound in the days before Jesus returns to restore righteousness and usher in His Millennial reign on earth with the resurrected Saints.

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.” 2 Timothy 3:1-5

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him,… Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 3-4

“And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:12-13

“They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4-6

EXPRESS GOD’S VALUES: LOSE YOUR JOB OR GO TO GAOL OR BOTH

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Aaron Edwards, a 37-year-old Christian theology lecturer at the Methodist-run Cliff College in England has been dismissed after tweeting that “homosexuality is invading the church. The institution, which touts itself as a global center for evangelism, dismissed the father of five for misconduct last week, deeming his tweet had brought the institution “into disrepute.”

This is a ‘Gospel issue,’ by the way. If sin is no longer sin, we no longer need a Saviour.

United Kingdom MPs voted 299-116 to continue criminalizing even silent prayer in the vicinity of Abortion Clinics. A lawyer for the U.K.’s Alliance Defending Freedom stated: “Today’s vote marks a watershed moment for fundamental rights and freedoms in our country. Parliament had an opportunity to reject the criminalization of free thought, which is an absolute right, and embrace individual liberty for all. Instead, Parliament chose to endorse censorship and criminalize peaceful activities such as silent prayer and consensual conversation.

Washington Elementary School District, a public school district in Arizona, recently severed ties with Arizona Christian University over the university’s biblical views on marriage. The district, which had long partnered with ACU, decided to ban student teachers from the classroom. “The most alarming or shocking part of this meeting was that, despite the recommendation of the staff of the district who are the on-the-ground players in this, the LGBT agenda-driven board decided that it was just not safe,” Christian Post author Leonardo Blair explained. These student teachers have been in the classroom for 11 years without incident. And yet the Board decided that they just could not trust the student teachers not to be biased when they haven’t had any sort of incident in the classroom before.

Charlie Kirk is the Founder and President of Turning Point USA, a national student movement dedicated to identifying, organizing, and empowering young people to promote the principles of free markets and limited government. In anticipation of Charlie Kirk’s speaking engagement at the University of California, Davis, Chancellor Gary S. May released a remarkable video, expressing the hope that no one would show up for the event. Yes, he said, “we can work together to neutralize and negate their influence” — and we do this in the name of free speech. Talk about doublespeak! Chancellor May made clear that he personally considered Kirk’s views to be “loathsome and hurtful.” And he referred to Kirk as “a well-known proponent of misinformation and hate and who has advocated for violence against transgender individuals.” This last claim cannot be substantiated and is in fact a lie.

These are just four incidents reported today that I have seen. Persecution of Christians is now becoming commonplace. Jesus told us that this would be the case prior to His return to set up his Millennial Kingdom. Jesus and the resurrected Saints will reign on this earth for 1000 years prior to the second resurrection, the White Throne judgement, and finally a new heaven and new earth where only the righteous dwell.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:9-13

“They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:4-6

YOU MUST BOW AT THE LGBT ALTAR OR ELSE

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Article by Michael Brown, Christian Press Op-Ed Contributor

Do you remember when the main goal of LGBT activism was creating an atmosphere of “tolerance and acceptance”? Those days are long gone, and the goalposts have been moved dramatically. Today, if you do not partake in the public, mandatory celebration of LGBT pride, you will be marked and you will be ostracized. If you don’t believe me, just ask NHL hockey player Ivan Provorov.

Provorov, who is from Russia and plays for the Philadelphia Flyers, declined to participate in pregame warmups for the Flyer’s LGBT pride night since he would have been required to wear a pride-themed jersey.

He explained to reporters, “I respect everybody and I respect everybody’s choices. My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion [which is Russian Orthodox]. That’s all I’m going to say.”

In other words, if someone identifies as LGBT, that’s their business, and he respects that. He has his own religious beliefs which dictate how he lives, and he would ask others to respect that. Live and let live.

Flyers coach John Tortorella was supportive of Provorov’s choice, explaining that the team made clear where it stood on LGBT pride. As for Provorov himself, Tortorella said that “he is being true to himself and to his religion. This has to do with his beliefs and his religion. That is one thing I respect about Provy, he is always true to himself, so that’s where we’re at with that.”

But not everyone was as tolerant (remember that word?). According to hockey journalist Pierre LeBrun, if Provorov really respected the LGBT community, he would have participated in the event and worn the jersey. To paraphrase, “Who gives a hoot about his religious convictions? To respect someone means to celebrate who they are and what they do, even if it is in fundamental contradiction to one’s own beliefs and convictions.”

Hockey commentator Gord Miller seconded LeBrun’s sentiments, adding that Provorov should have been banned from playing in the game. After all, he tweeted, “Freedom of expression doesn’t give you freedom from the consequences of your words or actions.” To paraphrase again, “Failure to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride has serious professional consequences!”

Sports and comedy writer Rachael Millanta was even more blunt, calling Provorov “ignorant, obnoxious, and homophobic,” also referring to people like him as “bigots” who “hide behind their cherry-picked religion.”

Oh, the beauty of open-minded, liberal tolerance!

So, by Provorov following the consistent Christian teachings of the last 2,000 years (or, more broadly, the consistent biblical teachings of the last 3,000+ years), he is an ignorant, obnoxious and homophobic bigot who is cherry-picking his beliefs.

The same can be said for the tens of millions of Russian Orthodox Christians who share these beliefs, along with many hundreds of millions of other Christians of like heart and like mind.

In short, you cannot graciously disagree. You cannot respectfully opt-out. Instead, you must deny your convictions, rewrite the Bible, run roughshod over your faith, and publicly celebrate something you believe to be wrong. Otherwise, you are a crass human being and a small-minded bigot. Those are your only choices!

Already in 2011 in my book A Queer Thing Happened to America, I could point to the Riddle Homophobia Scale, used in schools to evaluate whether the students were “homophobic.” According to the scale, both tolerance and acceptance were considered homophobic, since homosexuality was not something to “tolerate” or “accept.”

Instead, the only way not to be homophobic was to embrace a “positive” attitude which called for “support, admiration, appreciation, and nurturance.”

Yes, if you don’t want to be a homophobe, you must admire your lesbian friend. You must nurture your transgender colleague’s new identity. Otherwise, you will be marked.

Are you surprised? Well, consider this: “The Riddle homophobia scale was developed by Dorothy Riddle in 1973–74 while she was overseeing research for the American Psychological Association Task Force on Gays and Lesbians.”

That’s how far back it goes, although it wasn’t widely released until 1994. That’s why I started my article with this question: “Do you remember when the main goal of LGBT activism was creating an atmosphere of ‘tolerance and acceptance?’”

Most young people, including young adults, do not remember this time because they never experienced it. Instead, they have grown up with the choice to celebrate LGBT pride or be branded, to comply publicly or be ousted.

That’s why one of the chapters in my forthcoming book Why Have So Many Christians Left the Faith is titled, “If Gay Is Good, Christianity Is Bad.” That’s how much the tables have turned, even though the testimony of Scripture remains as clear today as it has ever been.

One of my colleagues, who is now a pastor, worked for years as a computer programmer with Bank of America. He told me that little by little, he was getting pushed out of his job through LGBT activism. By the time he quit, every employee, let alone higher-level managers or executives, could see on your bio whether you identified as an LGBT ally. If not, you could virtually kiss your career advancements goodbye.

Provorov is just the latest example of this reverse bigoted, small-minded, judgmentalism which leaves us with only one ethical choice: We will continue to love our LGBT neighbor as ourselves and we will refuse to back down on our convictions regardless of cost or consequence. That’s what Jesus would have us do.

There is a week-long celebration of Gay Pride in Sydney at the moment with 12.000 marchers including our Prime Minister and other politicians.

Article from “The Age” newspaper February 25th, 2023

“Anthony Albanese made history on Saturday night when he became the first Australian prime minister to march in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

“It’s unfortunate that I am the first, but this is a celebration of modern Australia … a diverse and inclusive Australia,” he said.

“We need to be a country that respects everyone for who they are.”

Marching in his 35th Mardi Gras, Albanese paid tribute to the 78ers – the protesters from the original march 45 years ago ″⁣who were thrown in jail”.

LAST DAYS LAWLESSNESS ABOUNDS

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PEACEFUL PROTEST’: Antifa’s ‘night of rage’ sees officer shot, businesses burned

Mainstream media reported Antifa’s ‘night of rage’ in downtown Atlanta as “peaceful,” despite the heavy violence carried out by the protesters, including brick-throwing, burning police cars, and a shooting that sent a policeman to hospital. One has to ask what is the agenda of those who control the media.

Look at what Jesus said would happen in the days leading up to His return. Let us be part of the group that proclaims the Gospel of Jesus’ coming Kingdom.

“And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:12-14

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him… For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 3-4

“Godliness makes a nation great, but sin is a disgrace to any people”  Proverbs 14:34