Wednesday, June 8, 2011
When Government Calls Evil Good
What makes our government so unique is that the founders and framers of our Constitution and laws wrote them in the context of its citizenry being a moral people, rich in Biblical knowledge and practitioners of Judeo-Christian principles. In the 13th chapter of Romans, verses 3 and 5 provide a brief, but excellent in the purpose of our government and those we place in power through our election process …
“3For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; 4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil.” (NASB).
So the essential essence and purpose of the United States government is to promote social order by protecting its citizenry from evil! But what happens when our government becomes a terror to that which is good? The prophet Isaiah cried out “Woe to them that call good evil and evil good…”
Is it evil to pray? Most of us agree that there is nothing wrong with a person praying, no matter where the individual might be. Prayer has been an essential part of the American heart, soul and mind since the native Americans first set foot on this continent! Each individual has the right to believe in it or not, but certainly should not thwart or hinder those who do! Just a little research would tell any person that government has now taken a position to terrorize those who seek to pray at the times and places of their own choosing.
In 1999, U.S. 5th District Court Judge Samuel Kent issued a scathing attack against several students at the Santa Fe High School. If Marian Ward and others were to defy his order not to pray at a school event, he posted a federal marshal and declared that he would “make them wish that they were never born…” Again, is it evil to ask for God’s protection and blessings through prayer?
Other most recent cases include the San Antonio area’s Medina High School, where the 2011 graduating class valedictorian was ordered by U.S. District Judge Fred Biery to refrain from talking about God, Jesus or even saying “Amen!” Fortunately the school district’s appeal was granted, and the event, fueled by a public enraged by the judge’s order, became a special occasion affirming a belief in God and the goodness in relating to how Jesus’ influence brings positive living. So again, government’s attempt to call the good thing of prayer “evil” was thwarted by wiser minds.
In Houston, Texas, pastor Scott Rainey had said a prayer during the Veteran’s National Cemetery’s Memorial Day Program for the past two years. As he was invited to do the same this year, he was contacted and told that he could not pray in the name of Jesus, and if he insisted, then he would have to be disinvited.
Is it evil to be prosperous? As millions of immigrants even realize today, America is still the land of opportunity. Free enterprise and capitalism are built upon the foundation of liberty, and the right of the individual to exceed and excel is matched nowhere else in the world! Today, any person—regardless of who they are or where they came from—has the opportunity to prosper. The entrepreneur, the inventor, the leader, the investor usually comes from humble beginnings, but through personal sacrifice and belief in their own abilities, become successful and prosperous. Even those who study hard, further their education and prepare for rewarding careers do so at great sacrifice! Unfortunately, they are now seen as the enemy. Government has declared them to be selfish and gluttonous. “They make too much money, and must therefore share their wealth!” is the judgment. Government’s punishment for being successful is more taxation.
Is it evil to point out evil? In the New International Version, Exodus 20:13 says, “You shall not murder.” It is the willful taking of innocent life. What can be more innocent than an unborn child! Yet, many laws have been enacted and radically-enforced to protect the abortionist and the organizations that support and encourage it. Our government provides funding for the abortion procedure while making every possible effort to discourage those who speak against it! In the eyes of government today, the pro-life movement is the sinister group that must be carefully watched. To be an advocate for the unborn is evil as far as it is concerned!
What we are witnessing is the invasion of a foreign and sinister force—an ideology that is not American, but an unholy entity that has murdered millions and enslaved nations! Romans 13 makes it very clear concerning the function of government, and when it expands beyond its God-ordained boundaries, it soon becomes tyrannical. When it begins to see our good as evil, government itself becomes that!
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Democratic Party Appeals to Sinful Nature
According to the principles and actions of the Democratic Party today, even the Biblical account of Jesus’ parable of the talents was inherently flawed. In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus speaks of a rich man giving his three servants various sums of money to keep for him while he went away. Two of the servants used their innovative skills to double their sums, but one did absolutely nothing. The first servant was given five pieces, and made another five, giving him ten. The second servant had been given two pieces, and made another two, giving him four. The third servant was given one piece, but instead of using it to increase his sum, he hid it in the ground!
When the rich man returned, he was very pleased with the two who had increased their sums of money, but was utterly displeased with the one who merely buried his. When questioned by the proprietor, he simply made excuses, and for his slothfulness, his one piece of money was taken from him, and given to the one who now had ten, giving him a total of eleven. This is the fundamental principle of capitalism and our free enterprise system—hard and dedicated work and effort does have its rewards!
From the liberal view, the traveling proprietor would have scolded the two profiteers and taken money from them for redistribution. In the name of fairness, he would take five pieces from the one who had gained ten, and give one piece to the one with four, and four to the one who had buried his one—giving each of the servants five. Is this what Jesus intended? Let’s lay it in the line…
If a person is diligent in planning their life’s course—going to school, college, making good grades, getting a well-paying job, even becoming a CEO of a major corporation—then they deserve every penny that the market is willing to pay them! It requires the use of one’s own God-given abilities to maximize his or her potential in life. If an individual or even a husband and wife take the risk of starting a business that become very successful, then they deserve to enjoy the fruit of their labor, and the reward for their risk! These people are utterly despised by the socialism-craving members primarily embedded within the Democratic Party, as well as the media complex, civil rights industry, environmental movement and many other left-leaning groups and organizations.
In contrast, suppose a young woman is sexually active and promiscuous during her teenage years. She becomes pregnant and eventually has four or five children, and as in many cases, by different men. She has learned how to live off of the system. She has buried her God-given gifts and now lives in functional poverty with her children, but no man. But what about the man? He dropped out of high school because he thought that he needed to make money right away! He was a man at age sixteen, and thought that he could make the world and the system work for him, but now reality has set in, and the opportunities that were many had gone. Now, both the woman and the man are staunch Democrats, and nothing can persuade them differently. It does not matter what the issues are, neither does morality apply. The Democratic Party is the political machine they are devoted to forever!
But what is the Democratic Party’s appeal to the masses? What makes them so strong and influential? Close and careful scrutiny tells us that they actually appeal to the lowest qualities in human nature, or should we say—the sinful nature! For example, one of the Democratic Party’s primary mantras is to place increasing tax burdens upon the wealthy because they make or have too much money. Is this not envy or even perhaps, jealousy? To simply want the power of government to act as the punisher of the economically successful bears no moral standing, and is a form of oppression. What moral position does one man have to determine how much wealth another man can have?
Then there is the question of how much of another person’s wealth is a person in need entitled to? It is one thing to give to another person in order to help them out, but it is another issue entirely when the recipient acquires the power to demand as much as he or she wants! So there is an appeal to one’s own greed, and when people in power promise to use the force of government to confiscate another person’s wealth is no more than legalized theft! The Democratic Party’s principle of wealth redistribution is quite appealing to those who are the beneficiaries, but the cost extracted not from the providers, but from those who become dependent upon the treasury is immense—it costs them their very souls!
The justification for punishing the successful people stems from the hatred that festers from within—an infection of the sinful soul. The Democratic Party’s strength comes from taking advantage of man’s sinful nature! People who are fed on a daily basis a steady diet of reasons why they are not treated fairly (even though their own choices in life are never examined) will allow the envy and jealousy to turn into hatred. Once the hatred has taken root, there is nothing that can turn it, and like a raging fire, the only way it diminishes is after it has consumed all of the fuel in its path!
So I close and conclude with a question: Is this the reason liberals hate Christianity? Those evil attributes listed actually drive and motivate millions of constituents in America, and our Judeo-Christian traditions work to counter them and inspire us to use our gifts and talents to be successful. It is normal to see prosperity as God’s blessing! To use our gifts and talents to become wealthy is a very common American dream. What the Democrats are encouraging is something strange and alien to our way of life.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
The Truth About the 14th Amendment
For many decades, the claim to right of citizenship based upon this perspective has become an openly contentious debate, as even our own political leadership has waxed weak and opportunistic, cowardly accepting this erroneous train of thought while pretending to be protectors and defenders of our venerable and historic document.
If the previously-expressed version truly expressed the purpose and intent of Section 1, then there would certainly be no argument. All would be as it currently is-- and then some! However, there is a significant part of this section not usually mentioned. The true wording of the opening statement of Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment is...
"All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside."
The missing clause clearly identifies and defines what personage is entitled to citizenship! It clearly presents two qualifying tests that make any person an outright citizen of the United States. The first is to be born in the United States or any territory claimed such as an embassy or military base. The next is whether the person is subject to its jurisdiction. The jurisdiction portion of the clause ensures that the amendment follows the course of natural law. Without it, there is chaos and confusion, which explains the turmoil surrounding our current "citizenship by birth" dilemma. In addition, the argument follows no sensible logic, nor makes good, common sense. In fact, to accept children born in the United States to parents who enter illegally places an undue burden upon the state and its citizenry. No other nation practices this policy because of its irrational proposition!
Natural law says that since a newborn is not able to choose, then the matter of jurisdiction is inherited from or transferred to them through the parents. Therefore, if the parents are subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, then the children are naturally assumed to be as such also. Again, this flows in accordance with the principles of natural law-- a line of thought that has been reflected and practiced by every nation from their various beginnings! On the other hand, if this principle is flipped, where the place of the child's birth becomes the sole determiner of citizenship as well as an opportunity for security for the parents, chaos and social unrest emerge!
So why was this part of the 14th Amendment necessary? Where did it come from and what purpose did it serve? First of all, Section 1 did address the issue of citizenship, but not for the purpose of establishing a "short cut" for those who are simply born here without taking into consideration of which nation's jurisdiction the parents are subject to. Neither should it be considered a "legal loophole" for the circumvention of current law. Our Immigrationa and Naturalization Laws speak clearly on this matter.
Recognizing that there are actually five sections to the amendment, the first one addressed the issue of citizenship for those having been born in the United States under extenuating circumstances. It stemmed from the matter of whether the slaves then recently-freed under the 13th Amendment and the subsequent Emancipation Proclamation were to be considered citizens. In addition, the 14th Amendment was a formal document declaring the protection of blacks in general, in light of an increasingly hostile U.S. Supreme Court of that day.
It is often said that America is a nation of immigrants, but one thing must be clarified. Black Americans are not immigrants! Immigrants migrate from one part of the world to another. This includes even the "Native American" who is believed to have come to North America via the land bridge. However, they came willingly, on their own. Blacks, on the most part were brought to the Americas as unwilling slaves. This made their situation quite different from any other ethnic or racial group, no longer having knowledge of a home land or discernable links to family or kin. With their true ties to any of the African nations, and having been so brutally separated from family through slave auctions and trades for over two hundred years, the freed blacks truly were people without a home-- except for America itself. In contrast, today's illegal immigrant population chooses to come to America, and move back-and-forth to and from their native lands. Victims have no choices.
Therefore, the 14th Amendment's original intent was to clarify and secure the rights of black people in order to thwart the efforts of the southern democrats and northern sympathetizers who were still fighting to preserve an apartheid society. This amendment brought an end to the authority of the "Dread Scott Decision," which held that black people were not, and could not become citizens of the United States, nor enjoy any of the privileges and immunities of outright citizenship. Its purpose was specific and targeted for that reason, and fits no other case, although politicians and others have used the court system to secure the citizenship rights of other groups.
So the conclusion is this: America still is a nation of laws, and not of men. When properly and correctly interpreted and applied, the 14th Amendment serves its rightful purpose. However, to use it to get around our current immigration laws creates chaos and social unrest. When applied correctly and appropriately, the rights of those truly qualified for citizenship are secured, but when applied unjustly, the rights of all are infringed! Section 1 of the 14th Amendment should be viewed in light of its original intent, thus continuing to guarantee the rights of those meeting the real criteria as stipulated.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Why Truth in History?
On the other hand, the work of Booker T. Washington is consistently downplayed and under-reported. For example, most people know that he founded Tuskegee University. Mr. Washington believed in the education of black America and the establishment of a strong infrastructure within the black communities throughout the nation. On a personal note, Eula Johnson, my own grandmother (who died before I was born) was sent from the small farming community of Brazoria, Texas to Tuskegee to learn to be a seamstress some time before 1913.
He appealed to philanthropists like Julius Rosenwald of the Sears and Roebuck fortune. Mr. Rosenwald teamed up with Washington to create an extensive system of community-based public schools in the early 1900’s known as the Rosenwald Schools. With such financial contributions, nearly five thousand of these schools were built throughout the south and parts of the north. In Texas, these schools were also built. In West Columbia, one such building was located and restored. Mr. Washington was a devout Christian and believed that Biblical teaching was just as important as math and science. A requirement of each Tuskegee student was to attend regular church services and meetings on the campus.
So the way textbook authors depict history should always provoke the reader to understand their intention and purpose. It is obvious that each of these men saw things differently. It can be said that Dubois was a liberal, and Washington was a conservative. Dubois is more popular today because he is a hero of the left, who has controlled much of our media as well as public education system. For the same reason, Washington has been all but written out of history. However, I propose that in Texas, the work of Booker T. Washington has had a far greater impact upon its citizens than the Marxist ideology of W.E.B. Dubois.
So the matter before us as Texans today is textbook selection, which symbolizes our future investment: what type of citizens will we produce in the years to come? The content of these books will affect how future generations view our state and nation.
So if the Texas State Board of Education wants to include certain historical figures in the textbooks, first make sure that the entire history of their work and efforts are included. Let their ideologies be known and examined by the students. The objective of Dubois and the liberal left has been to change America into a system that is strange, alien and hostile to true freedom, while the goal of Booker T. Washington and the Christian conservative has been to make it better for all.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Is President Obama More Protective of Islam Than Americans
The ovation and applause is not just an act of courtesy. When President Barrack Obama was making his apology tour through Cairo, Egypt, his words were obviously well-thought out and intentional.
He referred to the "Christmas Airline Bomber" incident as isolated. His Attorney General, Eric Holder has a history of being sympathetic to terrorists, seeking and acquiring the pardoning of members of the FALN, who were captured on video tape making bombs!
President Obama and his entire administration PLUS members in Congress have a hatred for America never before seen so obvious! As far as they are concerned, their enemies are the born again, Tea Party supporting Christians!
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Operation Re-Exodus
Friday, December 4, 2009
Tea Parties or Revival Movement?
No movement has shown as much passion as the thousands of tea parties held across the nation—individual communities, yet bound together with a fervent devotion to God, country and family—each of the many thousands of attendants holding the deeply-held commitment to finally stand and be counted for something greater than themselves. Frankly speaking, this movement bears many of the attributes of a great Christian revival of past periods of U.S. and world history so often written about by today’s theologians and the resurgence of basic Christian principles we pray for today!
There is an undeniable fact that those who truly understand and appreciate America’s founding and the sacrifices of the millions for its birth and then its very struggle to survive, are waking up to a great reality, and that reality is that our generation of freedom-loving and peaceful people is being challenged like never before, because those principles that many of our veteran soldiers went across the oceans to resist in order to prevent them from coming here have arrived, and now have taken control of our own places of power. We who had fallen asleep, and had forgotten that freedom is not free are now awakening!
Those powers that have now manifested are not interested in the truths that are still self-evident: “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness …,” but are boldly unabashingly forging ahead to remake America in the image of their own gods. Darwin, Marx, Stalin, Lenin and Mao, are the men they worship. Gramschi, Alinsky, DuBois and have replaced Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, while Castro, Mugabe, Ortega, Chavez and Obama preach the religion of government power and human dependency upon it. In contrast to this, we recognize that this Creator is God. Our inspiration of the Holy Bible and no other. Those beliefs that over 90,000 American soldiers died fighting against in Korea and Viet Nam as well as untold numbers of people around the world were slaughtered by have now captured and taken over the last center for the world’s hope for freedom—the United States government.
We did not fall neither under the power of the Soviet military might, nor the menacing million-man army of the Chinese, but we succumbed to the one thing founding father Thomas Jefferson feared would happen to us—ignorance! Jefferson believed that in order to prevent America from being conquered by foreign enemies, it had to be a nation of educated people who knew the word of God. Neither Jefferson nor any of the founding fathers anticipated America becoming a nation of Biblically-illiterate people! We have come to this point in our history because of our own moral failures to truly stand up and actually be one nation under God primarily because the vast majority of our Christian leaders have cowered in their offices and become timid in their pulpits!
We only find a very shallow remnant of what was once a great fire that served as the core of America’s struggle for freedom—the church and the preacher! Where are they today? If the Declaration of Independence is explicit enough to correctly tie the only source of our very freedom and humanity to a Supreme Being— a Sovereign Ruler—then where are the men who are yet willing to carry that message forward to remind and teach the true meaning of this great document? Is government still the servant of God, who once appointed kings but has now given us the responsibility of stewardship to elect Presidents who represent His kingdom here on earth?
So, as a start, a good question has to be, “Where are the Christian leaders today, especially the pastors?” Has the revival started without them? Much of what has gone wrong with America is not attributable to the invasion of foreign powers, but a crumbling of our moral and spiritual infrastructure within! As the nation stands on the brink of plunging into a world of socialist utopianism (a perfect world without God), many of our Christian leaders and personalities continue with programs and agendas as if there are no threats to our future!
Have we become too busy tending the buildings and the programs while the very soil beneath our feet is about to be taxed from under us? Are we afraid to become involved because it may jeopardize the 501(c)(3) status? One pastor replied that his congregation is comprised of both democrats and republicans, so it was his duty to remain neutral in the political arena. Since when did it become the pastor’s responsibility to keep the peace within the church at the expense of the truth in God’s word? The issues should never be interpreted to be acceptable within the ideologies of neither the democrat nor republican, but rather whether the church is addressing the matter of good versus evil! To the credit of many, there are pastors and Christian leaders who are addressing these issues, and leading the cause to remind Americans that without we are a Christian nation, even in spite of President Obama’s declaration that we are “no longer…”
The institutionalized pastor and the domesticated preacher may place their limited focus on protecting their positions and dominions, but God bless those who, like the original founding fathers of this nation, have committed the moral equivalent of pledging their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor for America’s salvation. As the mega churches pack the pews and the people sing and dance with joy, may the grass root revival begin, challenging those who place their hands on the Bible and swear to protect and defend the U.S. Constitution from enemies both foreign and domestic, so help them God! As the churches embrace the gospel of tolerance, may the sword of the spirit do its duty to separate! As the pastors declare that there are other ways to heaven, let the average citizen stand up and declare that Jesus is the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords! As the preachers lay prostrate at the steps of Washington D.C. and sell their souls to the government beast in the name of the social gospel, may the common man be spiritually rejuvenated in the new declaration of independence—that we still are one nation under God—and no one else. So let revival come, regardless of whether the church wants to get involved!