INDIA - Four Christians Arrested in Madhya Pradesh

On Jan. 5, police arrested four Christians on false charges of forcible conversion in the village of Kushalpura, Madhya Pradesh, India.

At 10:00 a.m., Pastor Kantilal Bhuria went to a home where 25 Christians were gathered for prayer. During the service, a mob of Hindu extremists barged into the house and accused Pastor Bhuria of forcibly converting Hindus. The extremists verbally abused those present and beat a Christian woman. The police arrived on scene after receiving a phone call from the attackers and arrested four believers. At last report, these Christians remained in detention. Pray for the release of these Christians.

The Voice of the Martyrs provides assistance to persecuted believers in India through the Families of Martyrs fund and resources to rebuild their homes or churches. VOM also provides Bibles and literature so pastors can adequately share the gospel. VOM encourages you to pray and ask God to give these pastors and other suffering believers in India grace, wisdom and endurance as they serve Him.

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CHARLES SPURGEON: MEET THE ONLY GOD THERE IS

Ken Silva wrote over on the appraising ministries blog (http://apprising.org/)"From the Charles Spurgeon devotional At the Master’s Feet for January 20. Using the Sword of the Spirit Spurgeon slices through the mystic mist of the mush god of contemporary Christendom:

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Galatians 6:7-8, KJV)

And we now declare that the God of Holy Scripture is a God of inflexible justice, He is not the God Whom some of you adore. You adore a god who winks at great sins; you believe in a god who calls your crimes peccadillos and little faults. Some of you worship a god who does not punish sin but who is so weakly merciful, and mercilessly weak, that he passes by transgressions and iniquity and never enacts a punishment.

You believe in a god who, if man sins, does not demand punishment for his offense. You think that a few good works of your own will pacify him, that he is so weak a ruler that a few good words uttered before him in prayer will win sufficient merit to reverse the sentence, if indeed you think he ever passes a sentence at all. Your god is no God; he is as much a false god of the Greeks or of ancient Nineveh.

The God of Scripture is one who is inflexibly severe in justice and will by no means clear the guilty. “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked” (Nahum 1:3, KJV). The God of Scripture is a Ruler who, when His subjects rebel, marks their crime and never forgives them until He was punished it, either"

We all (I am the Chief of Sinners here) must fight the urge to create a god in our own image and with the Israelites of old dance around our creation and proclaim "This is the god who brought me up from the land of Egypt"or"This is my personal Lord and Savior", and "My God is this". God forgive me and and help me to see that my reasoning is just as silly as Aaron's "So I said to them 'Let any who have gold take it off.' So they gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf." The only remedy for this is to throw ourselves into the Word and get to know the God as he has revealed himself.

Towards a Theology of Fitness

Until about nine months ago I would have scoffed at the idea that one should develop a theology of fitness. A Theology of Work, yes, a Theology of Marriage – absolutely, but fitness, nah. Seriously, the people who focus on that sort of thing are the granola eatin’ momma’s boys who take one statement by Paul, eisegete it beyond recognition and then paint it on the wall of their Jesus gym. 1 Timothy 4:8 says “for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” I think that taking this verse and trying to suggest that Paul is trying to get Timothy to begin “Pumping Iron” is abandoning the natural reading of the text, and more than just a little bit silly. But, I have seen “Bodily Exercise Profits” on the walls of at least two YMCA’s. The same holds true for Paul’s athlete analogies; A simple reading (not a study mind you – just reading) will inform one to realize that Paul is using a commonly held cultural ideal to make a point about spiritual things. To take these analogous images and use them to teach fitness is, to me, an unconscionable mishandling of The Scripture. So, for all these reason I merrily ate my fried bologna sandwich surrounded by my books and got fat nasty and disgusting, laughing at the Under Armour wearing fools out there in the cold (or the heat as the case may be.)

But then I was invited to go to Nepal to help a member of my church teach, train, and equip pastors. I was going to get to go to a foreign land and impact the Church of my King by teaching His servants how to preach expositional Sermons. Now this is my sort of thing. The route we where to take to get to the “Seminar” was described to me like this: “We will fly out of Kathmandu to city X and then take a bus to Town Y, and in Town Y we will get a Taxi to take us ‘as far as it goes’, and then we will walk the rest of the way.” “How far do you think that might be?” I asked. With a chuckle my host said “That is depends on where the Taxi will go no more”. I couldn’t tell at this point whether my friend was messing with my mind, if I was having trouble with his broken English, or the situation was really this nebulous. After several minutes of wrangling with the language I was able to determine that I should be prepared to walk 20 kilometers with a pack full of all my stuff, to preach the gospel. As a former Marine I know it was possible that I had gotten in up my neck. As I leaned on the counter to catch my breath from walking to the fridge I slowly ate a Swiss Cake Roll and thought about the changes that I was going to have to make in the next few months.

The preparation was simple, I bought a good heavy pack and filled it with commentaries and Greek word studies until it was about 50lbs and walked. The first day I almost got out of my office, and then I was able to make it to the front door and so on until I was walking about 5 miles a day with my pack. I am pretty sure that my neighbors thought I had finally lost my ever-loving mind as I plodded around the community with all 5 kids in tow and Wuest falling out of my pack. But, I was ready - I thought. As you have probably already surmised the terrain in Western Nepal (What with the Himalayas and everything) was a good bit different than the piedmont of North Carolina, and the mental/spiritual exhaustion of the actual work I had traveled to perform made the walking up and down the mountains all the more difficult. I returned to the United States a different man and wouldn’t trade those two weeks of crushing for anything. This is not the place to discuss all the things God taught me in Nepal, but I did have a bit of an epiphany about fitness.

I heard John Piper say in a sermon one time something near this “If you do not possess a passport you are not in God’s will.” His point, I think, was this: If you are not prepared to answer the call of your king at a moment’s notice then you are presuming upon God not calling you to serve him outside of the country. When I heard this I patted my passport, said Amen, you tell ‘em, smiled and moved on. But, if this principle is correct, if I am to be ready to be scrambled in the service of my king immediately then fitness becomes an issue of the Gospel. Things began to crystallize in my mind. If everything God has given me is to be used for Him for the furtherance of the gospel – If my Home, my marriage, my money is a gift given as nothing more than equipment to be used in the service of my King then is my body any different? 2 Timothy 4:1-2 says “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.” If I study diligently to be obedient to this passage am I assuming upon WHERE I am to preach the gospel. I confess as sin that yes I was. I was living my life as if God could not possible send me to preach his gospel somewhere that required that I walk further than from the car to the pulpit. In Nepal one morning I stood with two Nepalese Pastors as they looked across the mountains and said “There is a village on that mountain that has not heard the gospel”, and “We need to send someone over there with Jesus” and as this conversation continued I realized that because of my American mindset it had never crossed my mind that God might ask ME to walk to “that Village” and preach the gospel, and that right then at that moment I COULD NOT do so because I was physically unable, and that made me ashamed of my sin. So, for me the first point in my theology of fitness is simply this.

I must be ready at all times to respond to the call of my King to take the gospel wherever he sends me. This would include my spiritual walk in that I must be in constant communion with my savior so that I am ready. This would include my mental preparation in that I study and equip myself to preach and respond and hold Jesus up. And now I realize that this would include Physical preparation in that I must be prepared and equipped to physically Go should the call come.

I will continue with the second and third points in the next few days.

-Blaurock

A Prayer for President Obama by Al Mohler

A Prayer for President Obama
Al Mohler http://www.albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=3113

Posted: Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 2:00 am ET

Our Father, Lord of all creation, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: We pray today with a sense of special urgency and responsibility. We come before you to pray for our new President, Barack Obama, and for all those in this new administration who now assume roles of such high responsibility.

We know that you and you alone are sovereign; that you rule over all, and that you alone are able to keep and defend us. We know that our times are in your hands, and that "the king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord" [Proverbs 21:1]. Our confidence is in you and in you alone. We come before you as a people who acknowledge our constant need for your provision, wisdom, and protection.

Father, we pray today for Barack Obama as he takes office as President of the United States. We pray that you will show the glory of your name in our times and in these days, confounding the wisdom of the wise, thwarting the plans of the arrogant, and vindicating those who do justice and practice righteousness.

Father, we pray with thanksgiving for the gift of government and the grace of civic order. Thank you for giving us rulers and for knowing our need for laws and ordered life together. Thank you for this nation and the blessings we know as its citizens. Thank you for freedoms unprecedented in human history. We understand that these freedoms come with unprecedented opportunities.

Lord, we pray with thanksgiving for the joy and celebration reflected on millions of faces who never expected to look to the President of the United States and see a person who looks like themselves. Father, thank you for preserving this nation to the moment when an African-American citizen will take the oath of office and become our President. Thank you for the hope this has given to so many, the pride emerging in hearts that had known no such hope, and the pride that comes to a people who have experienced such pain at the hands of fellow citizens, simply because of the color of their skin. Father, we rejoice in every elderly face that reflects such long-sought satisfaction and in every young face that expresses such unrestrained joy. May this become an open door for a vision of race and human dignity that reflects your glory in our differences, and not our corruption of your gift.

Father, protect this president, we pray. We pray that you will surround this president and his family, along with all our leaders, with your protection and sustenance. May he be protected from evil acts and evil intentions, and may his family be protected from all evil and harm.

We pray that the Obama family will be drawn together as they move into the White House, and that they will know great joy in their family life. We are thankful for the example Barack and Michelle Obama have set as parents. Father, protect those precious girls in every way -- including the protection of their hearts as they see their father often criticized and as he is away from them on business of state. May their years in the White House bring them all even closer together.

Father, we pray for the safety and security of this nation, even as our new president settles into his role as Commander in Chief. We know that you and you alone can be our defense. We do not place our trust in horses or chariots, and we pray that you will give this president wisdom as he fulfills this vital responsibility.

Father, grant him wisdom in every dimension of his vast responsibility. Grant him wisdom to deal with a global financial crisis and with the swirling complex of vexing problems and challenges at home and abroad. May he inspire this nation to a higher vision for our common life together, to a higher standard of justice, righteousness, unity, and the tasks of citizenship.

Father, we pray that you will change this president's heart and mind on issues of urgent concern. We are so thankful for his gifts and talents, for his intellect and power of influence. Father, bend his heart to see the dignity and sanctity of every single human life, from the moment of conception until natural death. Father, lead him to see abortion, not as a matter of misconstrued rights, but as a murderous violation of the right to life. May he come to see every aborted life as a violation of human dignity and every abortion as an abhorrent blight upon this nation's moral witness. May he pledge himself to protect every human life at every stage of development. He has declared himself as an energetic defender of abortion rights, and we fear that his election will lead directly to the deaths of countless unborn human beings. Protect us from this unspeakable evil, we pray. Most urgently, we pray that you will bring the reign of abortion to an end, even as you are the defender of the defenseless.

Father, may this new president see that human dignity is undermined when human embryos are destroyed in the name of medical progress, and may he see marriage as an institution that is vital to the very survival of civilization. May he protect all that is right and good. Father, change his heart where it must be changed, and give him resolve where his heart is right before you.

Father, when we face hard days ahead -- when we find ourselves required by conscience to oppose this president within the bounds of our roles as citizens -- may we be granted your guidance to do so with a proper spirit, with a proper demeanor, and with persuasive arguments. May we learn anew how to confront without demonizing, and to oppose without abandoning hope.

Father, we are aware that our future is in your hands, and we are fully aware that you and you alone will judge the nations. Much responsibility is now invested in President Barack Obama, and much will be required. May we, as Christian citizens, also fulfill what you would require of us. Even as we pray for you to protect this president and change his heart, we also pray that your church will be protected and that you will conform our hearts to your perfect will.

Father, we pray these things in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, the ever-reigning once and future King, the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. He and he alone can save, and his kingdom is forever. Above all, may your great name be praised. Amen.

_________________________

Christians are, first of all, citizens of a heavenly kingdom. The followers of Christ know no allegiance of ultimate rank to any government or earthly authority. Yet, the Bible clearly teaches that God has given us the gifts of law, government, and ruling authorities for our good. We are instructed to pray for "rulers and all who have authority" and to be faithful in praying "so that we can have quiet and peaceful lives full of worship and respect for God" [1 Timothy 2:2].

As Barack Obama prepares to take the oath of office and become the 44th President of the United States, Christians should be thinking about how to pray for the new President. I offer this prayer as a place to start, as we observe the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States together.

Hebrews 13:3

Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. Hebrews 13:3



Location: China Arrested: January 2007 Days Imprisoned: 726
Print Fact Sheet

On January 26, 2007, 76-year-old Shuang Shuying and her son, house church leader Hua Huiqi, were attacked, wounded and arrested by police while walking near a 2008 Olympic hotel site in Beijing. Shuying has numerous medical problems and is serving two years in prison. We invite you to write a letter of encouragement to Shuying. We have experienced incredible results when readers write to believers who have been imprisoned for their faith. The letters often result in shorter prison sentences. Send a letter of encouragement to Shuying and let her know you are praying for her. Also, write to the Chinese government requesting she be released. Let your friends know about suffering believers in China and encourage them to pray and write too. Get involved. Pray and write today.

http://www.prisoneralert.com/pprofiles/vp_prisoner_177_profile.html

Quote of the Day

“If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the Word of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Him. Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” -- Martin Luther

Christians in Retreat

The Tennessean today published a story titled “Southern Baptist Fight decline” which can be found here http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090117/NEWS06/901170354. In this article Bob Smietana, wote,

“The biggest problem facing Baptists may be that they talk a lot about saving souls, but church members have become reluctant to share their faith. Baptists emphasize believer's baptism, which means that new converts should be immersed after professing their faith in Jesus Christ.

Ed Stetzer, head of LifeWay Research, said that a grass-roots evangelism revival is needed in Baptist churches. He says too many Southern Baptists rely on preachers to talk about Jesus.

"Southern Baptists are people who love to talk about evangelism, as long as it is being done by someone else," he said.

In 1978, just before the start of the resurgence, there was one baptism for every 36 members of the convention. By 2007, that ratio was one baptism to every 47 members.

"We are baptizing fewer of our own children, and fewer unchurched people," LifeWay's Rainer said.

More than 9,000 congregations, or almost a quarter of all Southern Baptist churches, reported no baptisms in 2007. And, in that year, only 8.3 percent of the churches were responsible for 49.8 percent of the convention's baptisms.”

The problem has to be that Southern Baptist either:

A. Do not believe in Hell any more.

B. Hate the people around them so much that they wish they would go to hell.

C. Are so lazy and narcissistic that they would rather watch football (or read or play Boggle or whatever) than warn people about hell.

D. Are trying to stay out of hell themselves by playing religious games, and once they have checked off the Church box they are done.

I think the answer is either C or D and it breaks my heart. And, the enemy is not taking a break either. If he can get all of us focused on the election, or putting together a petition to have “Desperate Housewives” taken off the air, or making sure that the Jesus fish on my pickup is well polished then there is no one left to share the gospel with the guy at your job. I would invite you the visit http://www.wayofthemaster.com/learntoshare.shtml, and dedicate your life to Jesus and doing the work he has called us to do. Jesus said “Go” and if we disobey that, if we thumb our nose at the King and make silly excuses then how can we expect anything but condemnation in our lives?

Blaurock Luke 12:47

How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation

How Barack Obama Will Make Christ a Minister of Condemnation
January 17, 2009 By: John Piper


At Barack Obama’s request, tomorrow in the Lincoln Memorial, Gene Robinson, the first openly non-celibate homosexual bishop in the Episcopal Church, will deliver the invocation for the inauguration kick-off.

This is tragic not mainly because Obama is willing to hold up the legitimacy of homosexual intercourse, but because he is willing to get behind the church endorsement of sexual intercourse between men.

It is one thing to say: Two men may legally have sex. It is another to say: The Christian church acted acceptably in blessing Robinson’s sex with men.

The implications of this are serious.

It means that Barack Obama is willing, not just to tolerate, but to feature a person and a viewpoint that makes the church a minister of damnation. Again, the tragedy here is not that many people in public life hold views (like atheism) that lead to damnation, but that Obama is making the church the minister of damnation.

The apostle Paul says,

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves , nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

What is Paul saying about things like adultery, greed, stealing, and homosexual practice? As J. I. Packer puts it, “They are ways of sin that, if not repented of and forsaken, will keep people out of God’s kingdom of salvation.” (Christianity Today, January 2003, p. 48).

In other words, to bless people in these sins, instead of offering them forgiveness and deliverance from them, is to minister damnation to them, not salvation.

The gospel, with its forgiveness and deliverance from homosexual practice, offers salvation. Gene Robinson, with his blessing and approval of homosexual practice, offers damnation. And he does it in the name of Christ.

It is as though Obama sought out a church which blessed stealing and adultery, and then chose its most well-known thief and adulterer, and asked him to pray.

One more time: The issue here is not that presidents may need to tolerate things they don’t approve of. The issue is this: In linking the Christian ministry to the approval of homosexual activity, Christ is made a minister of condemnation.

Desiring God Blog

"God Told Me"

A Friend of Mine, John Killian Ask me the following question:
"In light of the position we hold that Scripture is our sole authority, I would like comments on the matter of those who constantly claim that God speaks personally to them. Do people today hear voices from God? Is God silent? Do these personal messages from God possess a value on par with Scripture? Lest I am perceived as harsh, I am sincere in wanting input on this question.

I believe that God is still free to speak (just as he did to the prophets) and still does speak to people through many aveunes. The inner conviction of the Spirit, through other believers, through creation through a variety of methods and means. These convictions or experiences however must be interpreted through the lense of scripture. God will never tell you something that contridicts scripture or goes against it in any way. These experiences are in no way equal to scripture. When I preach do I believe God is speaking through me, yes. Do I believe that I have been inspired by he Holy Spirit to speak, yes of course, I pray that every time I speak I am inspired. But, is it inspired to be equal to scripture no way. The same applies to any other Word we have from God. Scripture has a higher level of authority above all other forms of revelation."

An Excellent question, one that I think the Church has avoided for far too long out of the fear of offending someone. Hebrews 1:1-2 says "Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world." So, I think that John Piper rightly points out that there are two phases of Revelation 1.) God spoke through prophets, and 2.) He now speaks through Jesus. When we look for a third way are we not saying, "I have plumbed the depths of this Jesus guy, and have found Him wanting. I need more than Jesus." Really, Has my wicked evil heart Really exausted all that Jesus has to offer me so that I long for another word? Or, could it be that I am too lazy to fall on my knees with my face in The Book and seek Him with all my being and effort. I believe that if we seek more of Him, if Jesus becomes the goal and not the means then the "Who do I marry", and "What house do I buy" kind of questions fade to grey and more or less take care of themselves.


It seems to me from observation and personal experience (Not very valuable I know) that when most people say "I feel lead" it means "I really want to", or "I feel strongly" and "God has laid ____ on my heart" means "I just thought of this". As a pastor I have had different people say that "The Lord has lead me" to leave their wife, sue a fellow christian, and take a job as a bartender. I have also had two separate people in the midst of an affair tell me that "God has given them peace" about the illicit relationship because they "really love" the person they are not married to at the time. I realize that these are extreme examples, but they highlight the fact that Our heart is deceitful (A liar) above all things and desperately wicked. I cannot (Nay Must not) believe what my heart/mind tell me. God, I believe does speak to us, through His Word primarily and through His Church, (but we are to test these against the word). Personally, I have excised all the "God lead, God spoke, God called" phrases from my vocabulary lest I break the commandment to Not Take the Lord my God's Name in vain. I think that God guides us through various means, but if it isnt in text I cannot be SURE that it is Him, and must treat it as a lesser, much lesser, authority.

Blaurock