Concerns with the 'Manhattan Declaration'

The Manhattan Declaration has recently become a major topic of discussion in religious circles in regards to social issues in our governments. The Manhattan Declaration (www.manhattandeclaration.org) is a document denouncing abortion, same-sex marriage, and other cultural, moral concerns - signed by leading religious leaders around the world. I agree with the moral concerns - HOWEVER - I am concerned with the ecumenical ramifications of the document and the mis-representation of the gospel in this document.

The Gospel is paramount - and any social issue we resist is secondary to Salvation by Faith through Grace! Many of the architects and leaders of the Manhattan Declaration reject the Gospel as such. The following quote from John MacArthur says it best:

"Instead of acknowledging the true depth of our differences, the implicit assumption (from the start of the document until its final paragraph) is that Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Protestant Evangelicals and others all share a common faith in and a common commitment to the gospel’s essential claims. The document repeatedly employs expressions like “we [and] our fellow believers”; “As Christians, we . . .”; and “we claim the heritage of . . . Christians.” That seriously muddles the lines of demarcation between authentic biblical Christianity and various apostate traditions."

We must not compromise our stand and our defense of the gospel in order to rectify a social issue!

For more information on this issue - read the arguments from John MacArthur, Allistar Begg, Dave Doran, and others.

Why Shepherds?

Isn't it interesting that the Angels proclaimed the birth of Christ to a bunch of shepherds on the hillside? Why them? They were loners, usually they smelled bad, they were not considered educated, and their profession was looked down upon by most of the culture. So why them? Why did the Angels not proclaim in the heaven's over Jerusalem, or over the palace, or over Rome?

Why? Because the Bible tells us that the Shepherds went "with haste" to see this thing that the Angels had told them of - AND - the Shepherds kept telling everyone about what they had seen and heard.

So why do you know Christ? Why are you and I saved and have an understanding of what Christmas is truly all about? Maybe, just maybe, we are supposed to be telling others about HIM!

What was Jesus thankful for?

We tend to be thankful for mostly temporal things. Jesus gave thanks for things other than physical. He thanked God for the common necessities of life (Mark 10:16). He thanked God for spiritual understanding ( Matthew 11:25-26). Jesus thanked God for the privilege of service ( John 11:41). He thanked God the privilege of sacrifice ( Matthew 26:27). Are we thankful for those things that "do not pass away"?

We have an Advocate - Jesus Christ

I John 2 tells us that God is the Righteous Judge who demands Holiness. Satan is constantly before the throne accusing the saints ( that's us ). Our testimonies, however, do not stand before God on their own merit (for our righteousness is as 'filthy rags'). Instead, our lives are defended by Jesus Christ and His shed blood. Satan accuses, Christ defends, and we stand blameless before God - IF - if we have put our faith in Him. Otherwise, we are standing on our own merits, and they will always fall short.

- Wes Gunther

Planned Parenthood director steps down

PLANNED PARENTHOOD DIRECTOR HAS CHANGE OF HEART (Friday Church News Notes, November 13, 2009, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - Abby Johnson stepped down as the director of the Planned Parenthood office in Bryan, Texas, because of a change of heart after watching an ultrasound of an abortion. She said, “I just thought I can’t do this any more, and it was just like a flash that hit me and I thought that’s it” (“Planned Parenthood Leader Resigns,” KBTX News 3, Nov. 2, 2009). Johnson, who worked for Planned Parenthood for eight years, says, “I feel so pure in heart. I don’t have this guilt. I don’t have this burden on me anymore. And that’s how I know that this conversion was a spiritual conversion.” Johnson says that Planned Parenthood has focused on “getting more abortions in the door.” She now supports the Coalition for Life and prays for volunteers outside the Planned Parenthood facility. The organization has sued Johnson and Coalition for Life, claiming that they “would be irreparably harmed by the disclosure of certain information.” Indeed, the truth hurts!

From Way of Life

The Star Spangled Banner - Verse 4

Thought Verse 4 ( which no one ever sings anymore ) would be appropriate for a Veterans Day commemoration!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Amen and Amen ( Wonder why they don't sing this one at sporting events?????)

Legalist - Defined!

The term 'legalist' is so casually thrown around today. Do we really understand legalism? Simply put, legalism is attaching something to the saving grace of God. If we put our own rules, standards, or ideas alongside the grace of God, making them a prerequisite for salvation, than we are indeed a legalist.

Simply having rules to govern ourselves does not make us a legalist. Rules are necessary. Isn't it interesting that when God made Adam and Eve - He set boundaries for them. He placed them in the garden as a home; He gave them the job of keeping that garden and naming the animals; and He gave them one rule - do not eat of that tree! There was no sin, no peer pressure, no bad influences - yet God still knew that mankind needed some structure.

If we state that cursing is wrong - than we have made a rule based upon the truths of scripture. If we state that someone who is saved could not possibly curse - than we are a legalist.