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HEAVENS DECLARE, THE
From the tiniest Hummingbird to the massive Condor, our skies are alive with the sound of God’s music. Copyright 2003 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth his handiwork (Psalm 19:1).” David may have thought twice about writing that statement if a red-breasted alarm clock went off outside his bedroom window at four every morning. If I can catch the robin that wakes me up, I’ll rewire his brain so he stays in the nest until at least 7:30. Eight o’clock would be better. Then there’s that noisy crow. I’m convinced the robin wakes him up to take over when redbreast’s vocal chords give out. It’s like the second world war song “Oh How I Hate To Get Up In The Morning.” Older Life Lines readers will remember the lyrics: “One day I’m going to murder the bugler. One day they’re going to find him dead. And then I’ll get the other pup, the guy who wakes the bugler up, and spend the rest of my life in bed.” Seriously, now, David likely had a chorus of birds to wake him up in the morning, and delighted in every chirp and cheep. A missionary in Central America told me she woke up each day to a morning medley of birds running around on the tin roof of their cottage. Imagine, for a moment, what it would be like if no birds sang. Why, we’d be able to hear the roar of traffic going by, and of aircraft flying over. We’d even be able to hear the television without cranking it up to ear-splitting volumes. But wait! We can do that now. The difference is it would be nothing but dead sound without the music of our feathered friends. Herring Gulls squawk as they soar over our home. Cardinals and saucy Blue Jays flash their brilliant colours as they fly by, and often land for our enjoyment in a nearby tree. Sparrows cheep, and Crimson Finches sing a song no man could hope to imitate. High in the sky the skree, skree, skree of eagles directs our eyes heavenward, to watch them soar effortlessly on a thermal, as the song from the musical “Oklahoma” says, “Making lazy circles in the sky.” The honking of Canada Geese sends us to the nearest window to watch as a graceful V forms, then fades into the distance. Then there’s the Redwings, the Killdeer, the Grackles and Starlings, all vying for attention in their own marvellous way. The shining flash of a Goldfinch, the intense orange of a Baltimore Oriole, and the black and red of the Scarlet Tanager all remind us of David’s song, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth his handiwork.” Imagine again, this time considering what the future holds. The apostle Paul wrote, “No one has seen, nor heard, nor even imagined what God has prepared for those who love him (1 Corinthians 2:9).” But the prophet Isaiah gives us a glimpse of it. He wrote, “The wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the baby goat, and a little child shall lead the calf and the young lion and the fatling together. The cow and the bear shall feed, their young ones will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox (Isaiah 11:6-7 Author's translation).” And we might add, the most ravenous hawk will be gentle as a tiny Junco. That’s all ahead of us in the world tomorrow, yet even today we can sing with David, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament sheweth his handiwork.” You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. The poorest of the poor can be rich, and the richest of the rich can be poor. It depends on what we consider wealth. Copyright March 06, 2005 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org “Honey, we’re rich. Some day we’ll have money.” This was the message on a poster of a man, his wife, and their two children playing happily together. Not many years ago few people were millionaires. Today, especially with huge lottery winnings, many people have more money than they know what to do with. They have things, but are they truly rich? The media generally doesn’t tell the story, but more than a few of the nouveau riche have found their wealth so burdensome they have taken their own lives. I’m told it was J Paul Getty I believe it was Howard Hughes, inventor and motion picture mogul who said he would trade all his fortune for one successful marriage. And isn’t this the case today? Television scandal programs boost their ratings by reporting on who’s seeing whom, who’s cheating on whom, and who is breaking up with whom after two, three, or seven years of marriage. They’ve lived together, slept together, made babies together, and spent more on their weddings than we might earn in a life time, but despite having it all they really can’t say they’re rich. January 22, 2005 One of the nation’s wealthiest men, Donald Trump, on the eve of his third wedding said, “I want a really great marriage. I want to get this right.” (We’ll see.) Many fine people email me wonderful stories. The following is one of them: A wealthy man took his son for a trip to the country to show him how impoverished some people are. They spent a day and a night at the farm of a needy family. On the way home the man asked his son, "Did you see how poor people can be?" "Yes I did, Dad!" "And what did you learn?" The son answered, "I saw that we have a dog at home, and they have four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden; they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lamps in the garden; they have the stars. Our patio reaches to the front yard; they have a whole horizon." When the boy was finished his father was speechless. His son added, "Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are!" Jesus met a fellow who didn’t know how poor he was. The young man wanted to know how he could be sure of having eternal life. Jesus said, “Keep the commandments.” This didn’t satisfy the fellow. He knew observance of God’s law wouldn’t save him, so he pressed Jesus for the rest of the story. Jesus said, “Sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in the kingdom of God.” We’re told, the man went away sorrowing because he had many possessions (Matthew 19:16-22; Mark 10:19-22; Luke 18:18-23). A rich life doesn’t depend on wealth and possessions. If we have love for God, friends, family, health, good humour, and a positive attitude towards life, we’ve got everything! Honey, we’re rich. Some day we’ll have money. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. Christians say if you’re not one of them you’ll burn forever in hell fire. But how long is forever? © 2001 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org Christians delight in explaining eternity – another word for forever – often citing the example of a sparrow’s wing-tip brushing Mount Everest once a year as it flies by. The time it takes for the wee bird to reduce Everest to a pile of dust is said to be only one second in eternity. That’s an awful long time to burn in hell because you didn’t recite the sinner’s prayer and sign a little pledge card. A child travelling to Grandma’s house will soon ask, “Are we there yet?” A trip of a few miles is forever to a young child. A headache can last forever. Some speakers drone on forever, don’t they? And a man atop la cordillera de los Andes can see forever. But how long is forever? Doesn’t it end when you reach Grandma’s house? A couple aspirins will bring forever to an end. The long-winded speaker will stop talking when his audience gets up and leaves. And to the man atop the Andes mountain range, forever ends with the distant horizon. Forever is generally limited by conditions. This is especially so in the bible. Surprised? Read on. The book of Leviticus catalogues God’s holy days, and says they are to be kept forever (Leviticus 23: 14, 21, 31, 41). Notice, especially, verses 39-42. In the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Israelites were to keep a feast unto the Lord. They were to use palm branches, branches of thick trees, and willows of the brook to build booths in which to live during the eight-day festival. Verse 41 says this was to be done forever. But wait. Despite these specific instructions, when the Jews returned to Jerusalem after seventy years captivity in Babylon, the conditions changed. Ezra the priest told the Israelites to use “olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees,” to make their booths (Nehemiah 8: 15). It would appear the conditions of having willow trees may have no longer existed. Also, the conditions of having olive and pine and myrtle branches had come about. For the most part, forever in the bible means as long as the conditions exist. This is made evident in 1 Samuel 1: 22, 28. Hanna had promised God that her firstborn son, Samuel, would abide in the house of Eli forever. But the condition of forever would end with Samuel’s death (vs 28) New Testament Christians insist that after death the unrighteous will burn forever in hell fire – and they’re right. But the duration of forever will depend on how many bodies are thrown into Gehenna fire, and how long it takes to burn them to ashes (Malachi 4: 3). Once the fuel for the fire is spent, it will simply burn out like your campfire at the lake. In the case of the righteous, however, forever will be never ending, for once having been changed to spirit composition, they will never die (1 Corinthians 15: 51-54). Life Lines is not intended to explain every detail of a subject. It is not a text book or a bible study. Its intent is to send you to your bible, and to consider Why you believe What you believe. So how long will I publish Life Lines to challenge your thinking? Forever. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. You can blame them for everything from ingrown toe nails to falling hair. They’re called your genes. Copyright June 19, 2004 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org And they sung, as it were, a new song…and no man could learn that song… (Revelation 14:3). For many years the medical profession has been singing its own song, and it’s not the one in the book of Revelation. You can sing it to the American Civil War song, “Goober Peas.” C’mon, let’s sing along…. Genes. Genes. Genes. Genes. The answer’s in your genes. The laboratories find ‘em, Excuses in your genes. Ain’t it the truth? Whatever your malady, you can blame it on your genes. There’s genes that predispose some people to have migraines. Others can blame their weight on their genes. (They came up with that when the old glandular-problem theory was disproved.) May as well quit going to A.A. Blame your alcoholism on a deficient gene, and you can excuse your drinking problem. Also, what good can the twelve steps do when your genes are at fault? Pedophiles and porno addicts can blame their actions on their genes. Ditto those who are addicted to weight-loss pills, pot, and crystal meth. Tired of paying speeding tickets? Tell the judge you can’t help it. Your speed-control gene is out of whack, and you just can’t help your lead foot. Surely the judge will understand. Fellows, when wifey says, You never do anything around here,” just tell her you’ve inherited a lazy gene. It’s an interesting one: kicks in whenever there’s work to be done, but switches off when your buddy calls you to go bowling. Ladies, do you max out your credit cards on every shopping trip? Not to worry. The gene that controls your buying habits is to blame. It’s the gene, not you, that’s out of control. The cancer people are pleased to tell you your disease has been traced to a renegade gene, and they’re spending millions trying to determine which one it is. So go ahead. Smoke your eyeballs out. It’s that pesky gene that’s killing you. (By the way, don’t be surprised if they never isolate the guilty gene: there’s too much money involved.) Yes, folks, no matter what your problem is, you can blame it on you-know-what. Depression, homosexuality, shoplifting, learning disabilities, anger, and even the breed of dog you prefer, can all be traced back to those wonderful genes. They give you an excuse for any kind of perversion. The latest discovery is the Jesus gene. Yep. Sunday-go-to-meetin’ people have a gene that makes them spiritual. Those blokes who live it up every weekend now have a reason for not getting saved before it’s too late. They ain’t got the Jesus gene. Perhaps some of our problems may be genetic, but don’t blame God. He created Adam and Eve with perfect genes. Through the centuries, however, man has disobeyed God’s dietary laws (Leviticus 11; Deuteronomy 14), has involved himself in every kind of sexual perversion including homosexuality, bestiality, adultery, incest, cross-dressing, and rape (Genesis 19:5; Leviticus 18:22-23; Leviticus 20:10-15; Deuteronomy 22:5, 25-27; Deuteronomy 23:17; Judges 19:22; Romans 1:27; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Timothy 1:9-10; Jude 1:7), and has polluted our air and water and land. All these, and more, have taken their toll on our genetic systems, and our children are suffering for it (Exodus 34:6-7). But can we blame our genes for all our screw-ball ways? Certainly not! Everyone is responsible for his own actions, and despite the supposed homo gene, homosexuals have overcome their perversions; alcoholics have beaten the bottle; druggies have been rehabilitated; and regardless of what the cancer societies may tell you, cancer patients have flogged the cancer gene through natural methods and prayer. Is there a solution? Of course there is! God gave it to us thousands of years ago when he said, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14).” Unfortunately that memory gene has become so deformed that most people forget the first part of God’s message. All they remember is the part that says, “I…will forgive.” So they keep right on living the same old way, and suffer for it. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. We can have peace, optimal health, financial abundance, safety in our streets. We can have it all if..... But are we willing to do what is necessary? © December 2, 2001 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org An old hymn song is titled “Bless This House.” A kitchen sign says, “Bless this mess.” When we sneeze someone is certain to say, “Bless you.” North America is certainly blessed compared with starving, warring nations. But are we truly blessed? There’s not a city where women can safely walk alone at night. Our hospitals are filled with people dying of cancer and other loathsome diseases. Our fields don’t produce abundantly: farmers spend fortunes on fertilizer and crop-failure insurance. Our governments take us on a roller-coaster ride of occasional financial highs and frequent lows. Our young people get away with murder, literally. Drug abuse is rampant. Homosexuality is called an alternate lifestyle. Extra-marital sex, adultery (remember that word?), and divorce is commonplace. And within a few years incest and pedophilia will be made legal. May as well: it’s almost normal now! Why? We’re a Christian country, aren’t we? The encyclopedias say we are. But the Christian textbook says otherwise. When our nation was in its infancy, if our founding fathers had obeyed God’s laws and enforced them, we would have become the showcase nation of the world. Our cities would be unpolluted, safe, and beautiful: not megalopitan monstrosities like many are today. Our farms would produce so abundantly we’d have to plow some of the crops back into the ground: fertilizers and pesticides would not exist. Our babies would be born healthy, free of the diseases that plague our children. As they grew up they’d be obedient to their parents, and polite to others. As teenagers they wouldn’t cause their mothers the anguish they do now. Our nation would be so prosperous we’d lend to other countries, and never need to borrow to pay our debts: we wouldn’t have any. We’d be happy when we arrived home from a day’s work, and we’d look forward to going to work in the morning. Utopia? Yes. But God promised it to Israel (Deuteronomy 28:1-14), and since he’s not a respecter of persons (Acts 10:34) he’s bound to promise it to us too. The secret is, however, that we’d have to obey God individually and nationally, and keep all – not just nine – of his commandments. But it’s too late to start now, isn’t it? God made another promise to Israel, and to any nation who wants to be blessed. He says, “If my people turn from their wicked ways, then – in that day – I will forgive their sin, and will heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14).” What a promise! And it’s not too late for our countries to claim it. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. Terrorism doesn't refer only to aircraft and the twin towers. It's on the internet every day, and you can help stop it. Copyright June 9, 2002 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org A young student was sitting on a bench reading his bible. A psychology professor on the bench was eating his lunch. "Praise God! Praise God!" the student exclaimed excitedly. "What are you praising God for?" the professor asked. "I'm reading about how Moses led the Israelites across the Red Sea," the young man replied. "Don't you know that's a hoax? said the professor. There's a copyist error carried over into the English text. It should read 'Reed Sea' and not 'Red Sea'. The Israelites crossed over a sand bank with only six inches of water. There's no need to get so excited." "Oh," said the young man as he went back to his reading. "Praise the Lord!" the young man exclaimed again. "What are you praising God for this time? I thought I explained to you there are no miracles in that book," "No miracles, sir? Why, God drowned the entire Egyptian army in only six inches of water! Praise the Lord!" The young student unwittingly obeyed the apostle Paul's admonition to prove all things; hold fast that which is good (1 Thessalonians 5:21). The Bereans, we're told, were not so lacking in wit. Paul had told them "Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ (Acts 17:3)." In verse 11 we read, "These [Bereans] were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so." The Bereans were not about to accept Paul's word at face value. They wanted to be sure he was telling the truth before they told others. If you've ever told someone something you heard, then found out it wasn't true, you know what it's like, as the expression goes, to have egg on your face. Every so often there's a flurry of virus warnings predicting dire results if they're not caught in time: your computer will crash; your hard drive will spin backward and spew out evil messages on your monitor; aliens will abduct you while you sleep; and so on. (OK, I made up the part about aliens, but if you've ever received such warnings you know what I'm writing about.) Paul's admonition to prove all things doesn't refer only to things spiritual. Yet Christians will gulp when they receive such viral warnings, and immediately forward them to everyone on their mailing list. They are, in turn, forwarded to the recipients' mailing lists, and forever onward. There are many sources to help you prove all things regards virus warning, and they're as close as your fingertips. Two excellent sources to bookmark are: http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org/ and http://www.symantec.com/avcenter. Before you forward another virus warning, and terrorize everyone on your mailing list, check it out. Chances are you'll discover it's a hoax. There are more than 2000 readers on the Life Lines mailing list. If each of you send this column to only ten people, 20-thousand people will get the message. If they, in turn, send it to ten, and they send it to ten, that means two million people will no longer frighten their friends with virus warnings that turn out to be hoaxes. That's two million people without egg on their faces, and you will be one of them. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. The bible says Jesus will return as a conqueror, but the tabloids say he’s already returned as a baby. Could the tabloids be right? Copyright 2004 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org Hey! Have you heard the news? Jesus has returned! It must be true because it was the headline story in The Sunday Scum, and you know the supermarket tabloids print only the facts. And if you believe that….. According to the trashy tabloids we’ve got it all wrong. The bible says Jesus’ return will be seen around the world (Matthew 24:27), but the tabs say he’s already returned as a baby. Guess he’ll have to grow up again, spend some time in the temple with the learned men (Luke 2:46-47), travel up and down the Jordan River on foot, and be crucified a second time (Hebrews 6:4-6). Well, it might not be quite like that. Maybe, by the time he’s twelve, he’ll sit with the power brokers in Washington, and jet set around the world with a dozen men and women to whom he will teach the finest arts of warfare. Instead of coming peacefully into Jerusalem, riding a lowly donkey (Matthew 21:5), perhaps he’ll rumble in at the controls of a powerful war machine, canons blasting, and announcing he’s come to set up the kingdom of God on earth. And he might shout into the microphone, “If you think life has been hell on earth, you ain’t seen nuthin’ yet. That bible you’ve believed all these years is a bundle of lies. In God’s kingdom you will be squashed like a bug if you dare breathe the wrong way (1 Kings 12:1-14).” With an imagination like that, I could make a fortune writing for the tabloids. I’ll never get rich writing the truth, but I intend to continue writing it as long as God’s holy spirit inspires me. A recent Life Lines column titled “Ducks In The Clouds,” told of conjured-up photos of people in the wind and dust. Nostradamus’ face was said to have appeared in the smoke billowing from the twin towers on 9/11. Jesus and satan and others have appeared in dust storms and snow squalls. One woman said her husband photographed some clouds and, when the film was developed the clouds had become a picture of Jesus. She wrote, “We still have the pictures and there is no mistaking it for something else. It is a picture of Jesus!” The devil uses every deception possible to seduce the gullible into believing his lies, and people believe them because satan disguises himself as an angel of light, and his demons appear as ministers of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). The good news of God’s kingdom is published free of charge (Matthew 10:8), yet few really believe it. But people gladly pay for satan’s lies, and swallow them like Jonah was swallowed by the whale (Jonah 1:17). In his second letter to the Thessalonians, Paul said the time is coming when the antichrist will be revealed, and those who choose to ignore the truth, and take pleasure in satan’s tabloid lies, will become so deluded they will be judged with God’s righteous judgement (2 Thessalonians 2:8-12). But what of those who publish such unholy garbage? Titus wrote their mouths must be stopped because they teach evil things for the sake of money (Titus 1:10-11). And Peter warns, “They speak evil of things they don't know anything about. But their own corrupt deeds will destroy them (2 Peter 2:12 Contemporary English Version).” On the other hand, God promises those who overcome the sinful ways of the world will eat from the tree of eternal life in paradise; will not be consumed by the second death; will eat of the hidden manna, and receive a new name; will be given power over the nations; will be clothed in holy raiment; will be made a pillar in God’s temple; will sit with Jesus Christ in his throne; will inherit all things, and be the son of God (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; 21:7). Is all this worth giving up to believe satan’s lies? Only you can decide. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. JESUS WAS A TIBETAN MONK: TRUE OR FALSE? Test time. Check what you think you know about the bible with this pop quiz. © 1995 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org
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You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. Some tunes for little Silver reminds grandpa how to be a little child again. © 2002 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org “Unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:3).” Think back, for a moment, to when you were a little child: three, four, five years old. For most of us life was wonderful: Play for a while; run barefoot in the rain; eat some lunch; have a nap; then start it all over again. We didn’t worry where our next meal was coming from. Daddy brought home the paycheck – whatever that was – and Mommy bought the groceries. If we skinned our knee, Mommy was there to kiss it and make the hurt go away. When the other kids climbed to the top fence rail and jumped off, Daddy was there to help us make our first few jumps. And when we were sad, and the tears came, Teddy was always there to listen. Life was simple then. When Daddy helped us make our first jump we trusted him to catch us. When Mommy put a bandage on our knee she told us it was our badge of courage, and we believed her. But something happened between those early years, and now. We may have read what Paul said, “When I was a child I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. But when I became a man I put away childish things (1 Corinthians 13:11)”. So, following Paul’s example we put away our childish things. Problem is, if you’re like me, you put them too far away. Life became complicated. Now it’s us who brings home the paycheck and the groceries. And for some reason there’s too few groceries at the end of the paycheck. We run up bills, then worry about how to pay them. The cost of everything is soaring, and the money we budgeted for a new dining room table has disappeared like the morning dew when the sun comes up. In May 2001 Betty and I became grandparents. Silver is now nine months old, and learning to enjoy the fun things of her young life. I picked up a children’s sing-a-long disk and slipped it into the player. A children’s choir soon had my toes a tappin’ to Arky Arky, and Down In My Heart. You know the words, “I’ve got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart....” Another verse says, “I’ve got the peace that passeth understanding, down in my heart....” And another says, “I’ve got the love of Jesus, love of Jesus, down in my heart; down in my heart to stay.” How wonderful to be transported back to those days when the livin’ was easy. Instead of being concerned about a zillion adult things, I was reminded that He’s Got The Whole World – including me – In His Hands. Unless you be converted, and stop worrying, and become as free and trusting as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. That’s exactly what another song teaches, “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy, in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” Jackie Gleason said, “I have a play-the-melody philosophy. It means don’t over arrange, don’t make life difficult. Just play the melody, and do it the simplest way possible.” That’s what the kids in the choir did: they sang the melody. No concerns about tight harmony or descants or contrapuntal rhythms; just the melody in straight-forward time. They kept it simple. When a young child was asked to recite the 23rd psalm he said, “The Lord is my shepherd, that’s all I want.” Might this be what Jesus meant when he said, “Unless you become as little children....” Jesus loves me, this I know, for the bible tells me so. Thank you God for reminding me of your love for me as your little child. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. Is Christianity today the same as that of the apostles? Could it foster a new martyrdom similar to that of the middle ages? This Life Lines column will reveal the truth and, no doubt, gender a spate of hate mail from those who call themselves Christians. Copyright 2003 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org Ah, those wonderful Buddhists. Gentle folk. Honest. Peace-loving. Helpful to all; turning away none. That's the way National Geographic portrays them. But the Gospel For Asia people see them differently. According to the Gospel For Asia, in September 2002, the Buddhist government of Bhutan had forty Christians arrested and tortured for their faith. The open practice of Christianity is forbidden, and citizens have been expelled from Bhutan for believing in Christ. Pastors have been threatened, and one Buddhist authority is quoted as saying, "I will persecute the Christians and put an end to them in Bhutan." Depending on who is telling the story, Islam is either a peaceful religion, or violent. In many countries Muslims live, work, and play side-by-side with their non-Muslim neighbours. But in August 2002, fourteen students at Nasser University in Tripoli were arrested and sentenced to death for converting to Christianity. Later reports confirmed they were still alive, but if they are released it is feared they will be murdered by their Islamic families. Webmaster's NOTE: For more on Christian Persecution go to The Voice Of The Martyrs The reports continue with accounts of tortures and executions in India, China, and many other countries, where citizens have abandoned the country's official religion to espouse the way of life called Christianity. “That’s terrible,” you say. But the chronicles of Christianity show it isn’t sparkling and lily white. For the first ninety or so years after Jesus’ death and resurrection, Christianity generally followed the precepts of peace and love toward all. Within the congregations there were problems (Acts 20:29-30; 1 Corinthians 5:1; Jude 1:3-4), but for the most part the people followed Paul as he followed Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). Then came a new Christianity based on money and greed and power. It fostered a form of racism which has continued into the 21st century. The new Christianity so hated the Jews it eliminated nearly everything from its system that was considered Jewish. Although it could not erase the fact of Jesus’ Jewish genealogy, it decreed if the traditional anniversary of his resurrection occurred on the same day as passover, the day called easter should be moved to the following Sunday. So entrenched was the anti-Semitism that during the middle ages the new Christianity cruelly tortured and executed anyone who observed the Jewish festivals, which were not Jewish at all but pre-dated the Jews by several centuries (Leviticus 23:2; 2 Kings 16:6). Then came Martin Luther, and another form of the new Christianity. It became known as protestantism. But how new was it? It eliminated the papal hierarchy of the mother church, but retained her anti-Semitic ways. It became divided over certain tenets: baptism by immersion, or sprinkling? infant baptism, or baptism only of those old enough to decide for themselves? But, like the mother church it retained Sunday instead of the so-called Jewish sabbath, easter instead of passover, Xmas instead of the biblical season of Jesus’ birth. However, through the centuries the original church, the one Jesus Christ said would stand forever (Matthew 16:28), has retained the biblical sabbath, God’s holy days, and the teachings of Jesus Christ and the apostles. It was these Christians who, in the middle ages, suffered and died for the faith of Jesus Christ, rather than bow to the dictates of the Roman religious system. And in this modern age they will be persecuted and martyred again by the mother church and her daughters (John 15:18-21; Revelation 12:16-17). But in the end God’s people will prevail. The entire Romish system will fall (Revelation 18:2), and the church of God -- also known as the body of Christ -- will guide all mankind to the truth, and to the way of peace in a stupendous kingdom that will spread throughout the galaxies forever (1 Corinthians 2:9; Isaiah 9:7). You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. The unthinkable occurs every day in countries beyond the oceans. And it’s just a matter of time until it takes place much closer to home. © 2002 / Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org (AUTHOR'S NOTE: The following was written several weeks before the sniper attacks began in the eastern United States. I had intended to publish it after the new year, but now feel the message is too important to delay.) “Out! Out! Everyone out, right now. Come on lady, leave your purse there. You there. Get that side door open. And hurry.” It had been a solemn moment. The minister was praying for God’s healing on the sick of the congregation, when five masked men in camouflage fatigues, barged in firing their rifles into the ceiling of your church. Panic envelopes you as you rush for the door, pushing two of your children, and carrying another. Outside, the congregation is crying, searching for loved ones, consoling one another as best they can. “Where’s Pastor Mahaffey?” someone calls out. “Look! There!” another yells. And the congregation stares in disbelief as your beloved pastor is shoved into a waiting car. A gunshot startles everyone to reality. “Go home,” one of the gunmen orders loudly. “This is an illegal meeting. Your pastor will be held for trial.” A few more gunshots emphasize the order, and everyone rushes to their cars. As you drive away, you see through your rear-view mirror your church has been torched, and is already burning out of control. You stumble into your house, sobbing to your husband, “This is America. This doesn’t happen here. Where were the police?” Almost daily there are reports of such atrocities from far-away lands -- Vietnam, China, Ethiopia -- but not in America. Pastor Mahaffey had asked for special prayers at the Wednesday evening bible study for some brethren in the Sudan who had been arrested because they wouldn’t deny their faith in Jesus Christ. But this is America, not the Sudan. You pick up the remote, hoping to catch a live broadcast of the fire department dousing the flames. Instead, an armed man dressed like those who invaded your morning worship is shouting into a microphone. “Christianity is a forbidden religion in this country. All churches will be closed, and anyone found holding religious meetings will be jailed. We are the government now. We are the police.” He brandishes his rifle to emphasize his statements. You stare at the tube, hoping this is an Orwellian-style production, but you can’t dismiss the events that led up to the broadcast. They’re fresh in your mind. Your body is shaking from the terror of it all. In 1967 Pastor Richard Wurmbrand published “Tortured For Christ,” his account of fourteen years of torture and suffering in prison in post-war Rumania. His crime? He, and thousands of others, refused to renounce their belief in Jesus Christ. The loathsome tortures Christians endured in filthy prisons, and the daily brainwashings they were submitted to, are too lurid and too many to recount here. Suffice it to quote one passage from the book. The author wrote, “In solitary confinement we could not pray any more as before. We were unimaginably hungry; we had been doped until we became as idiots. We were as weak as skeletons. The Lord’s Prayer was much too long for us. We could not concentrate enough to say it. My only prayer repeated again and again was, “Jesus, I love Thee.” But that was long ago and far away. It can’t happen here. Oh? Nobody in the twin towers erected to the god of the almighty dollar believed the horrors of September 11 could ever happen. After all, this is America. Yes, this is America, but despite how deep you may choose to bury your head in the sand, be aware that your church can be torched, your pastor can be carried off to have his eyes burned out with red hot pokers, and your Christian religion can be declared illegal and subversive. And members of your own family may report you to the authorities for daring to pray in the privacy of your bedroom. How do I know? Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth. I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household (Matthew 10:34-36). Daniel prophesied it will be a time of terror worse than anything mankind has ever seen (Daniel 12:1). But you don’t have to believe me. Just believe the word of God, and be warned. You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. Would you place a bet on God? It seems some Christians will. But God is not a racehorse to keep in the barn ‘til we want him to run. Copyright 2000/ Leslie A Turvey laturvey@becon.org The email said, “I told a man I could find three hundred people who believe in God, before he could find three hundred who didn’t.” It went on to ask the recipients to add their names to the list. I didn’t. I was astonished, not so much by the email’s content, as by the stature of the person sending it. This was not a Teens For Jesus type, nor a Jesus Freak, but a mature adult Christian with a high-ranking title. So why didn’t I add my name to the list? Don’t I believe in God? I certainly do. Am I ashamed to admit it? Absolutely not. But I refused to add my name because: (1) Such a list will not convince the man to change his mind about God; (2) There’s no way to determine whether either party padded their list with names from the telephone book and; (3) God is not a race horse. Now that last reason may sound ridiculous until one realizes such a challenge is tantamount to placing a wager at the pari-mutuel wicket. Knowing the writer of the email I doubt there was any money involved, but it was a wager nonetheless. The stakes were human ego. The purse? “I told you so.” There’s few winners at the race track, and lot of losers. But in a wager of believers vs. non-believers there are only losers. Suppose the man is the first to come up with three hundred names, does that make him the winner? Not at all. Birds of a feather flock together. So he’s just one of three hundred who don’t believe in God, and that makes the whole lot of them losers. On the other hand, the writer of the email, and all who signed the list, are losers for betting on a race horse called God. What’s the name of the other horse? No, not the man who is desperately trying to garner non-believer support. The other horse is satan. The man is satan’s agent. Christians in many countries are persecuted unmercifully for their belief. They would be astounded at our cavalier treatment of the eternal God, and of our saviour, Jesus Christ. They’d have no trouble finding three hundred people who don’t believe in God. They live in countries where bibles are forbidden, where churches must be registered (and registration can take years), where unregistered congregations are hauled off to prison. Yet they risk their lives daily in their obedience to the God we too often treat like a racehorse, kept in the barn until we want him to run for us. In his book “Tortured For Christ,” Richard Wurmbrand wrote, “Christianity has become dramatic for us. When you free Christians win a soul for Christ, you win a member of a quietly living church. But when we win a man, we know that he may well have to go to prison, that his children may become orphans. The joy of having brought somebody to Christ is always mixed with this feeling that there is a price to be paid.” Can you imagine Christians living under these conditions wagering who would be first to find three hundred people who believe, or don’t believe, in God? In another place Pastor Wurmbrand wrote, “It is pathetic to hear a Russian begging for one page of the Bible. He feeds his soul on it. They are happy to exchange a cow or a goat for a Bible. One man I know traded his wedding ring to get a battered New Testament.” And it’s pathetic, in our freedom, to read, “I told a man I could find three hundred people who believe in God, before he could find three hundred who didn’t.” You may contact the Life Lines author at laturvey@becon.org. |
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