Christian Heritage News

By Daniel Mann - Posted at Mann's World : I will merely cite studies which have highlighted the costs of the homosexual lifestyle, most of which I have gleaned from www.NARTH.com . (For other sources, visit www.PFOX.org ) ATTENUATION OF LIFE: Study published in International Journal of Epidemiology revealed 20-year-old Gay and bisexual men in a Canadian metropolis face life expectancy 8-20 years less than that of heterosexual men in same environment. Report concluded Gay and bisexual men now face life expectancy rate similar to rates experienced by all Canadian men in 1871. (“Modeling the Impact of HIV Disease on Mortality in Gay and Bisexual Men,” International Journal of Epidemiology #26, 1997.)  A new study which analyzed tens of thousands of gay obituaries and compared them with AIDS deaths data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), has shown that the life expectancy for homosexuals is about twenty years shorter than that of the general public. The study, entitl

By Paul Washer - Posted at Banner of Truth : It has been a little over one year since my heart attack (March 21, 2017). Without warning, I fell to the kitchen floor unconscious. I remember nothing that happened thereafter until five days later when I found myself in a hospital room. I asked what happened, and someone said, ‘You died three times.’ My heart had stopped and had been resuscitated on three separate occasions. I would like to be able to say that, in that moment, I said something spiritual; instead, I responded ‘I am just like Buck!’ Everyone just stared blankly, until I explained myself: ‘I am just like Buck. You know, the weasel on Ice Age who said “I died, but then I lived!”‘ Then everyone laughed. During my hospital stay, the pain in my ribs was intense due to the cardiac resuscitation. To add to that, the damaged neuroreceptors in my brain (from lack of oxygen) made me feel like my skin was on fire. The smallest movements resulted in intense pain. Due to a loss of

John Cao (Photo: ChinaAid) Posted at ChinaAid: (Pu’er, Yunnan—July 16, 2018) The lawyers of an imprisoned American resident and pastor conducted a rare meeting with him earlier this month, describing to him the details of his case and conveying his messages to the outside world. Lawyer Li Guisheng, attorney for North Carolina minister John Cao, described his trip with fellow human rights lawyer Yang Hui in the anecdote included below. Yang also penned a document to Pu'er authorities, the translation of which is forthcoming Cao, referred in the document below as his Chinese name, Cao Sanqiang, was taken into police custody in March 2017 after he and his colleague, Jing Ruxia, crossed the border from Myanmar into China. Authorities charged him with “organizing illegal border crossings” and sentenced him to seven years in prison. Due to his ministry building schools for impoverished children in Myanmar’s Wa State, however, Cao frequently traveled over the Myanmar-China bor

By Dr. R. Scott Clark - Posted at The Heidelblog : In a recent book, church growth guru George Barna seems to suggest the end or irrelevance of the local congregation. 1 He speaks for a significant number of people who find their congregation unsatisfying or who cannot find a church at all. It is not hard to understand such ambivalence and frustration. The church is divided and broken. It is filled with sinners and hypocrites. R. R. Reno and others have said that we are living in the “ruins of the church.” 2 This is how it has always been and exactly as Jesus said it would be. Welcome to life in the church. It is not perfect and, in this life, it will never be perfect, but it is nevertheless instituted by God. The ministry of the Gospel (and sacraments) and the exercise of discipline are the evidences that the church is Christ’s. Church: Since the Beginning The history of the Patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—and the history of Israel is the history of the institutional ch

Joel Osteen Preaching ( Wikipedia ) By Tim Challies - Posted at Challies.com : "This marks the final entry in a series of videos I’ve very much enjoyed putting together: The Great Sermon Series . And for this last video we are going in a different direction by looking at a not-so-great sermon. Joel Osteen’s “The Power of I Am” may be the most popular sermon on YouTube, but it’s also got to be the worst. ..." Read more here.  YouTube : https://youtu.be/6fPnYQrP7NE Transcript : https://www.challies.com/vlog/the-joel-osteen-sermon-that-changed-oprahs-life/

Pastor Andrew Brunson - Source: Hurriyet Daily News Posted at Hurriyet Daily News : Andrew Brunson , an American pastor being tried on terrorism and spying charges, has been moved from prison to house arrest in Turkey after a court ruling on July 25. Brunson , a Christian pastor from North Carolina who has lived in Turkey for more than two decades, was indicted on charges of having links with the Fethullahist Terror Organization ( FETÖ ), which Ankara blames for the failed 2016 coup attempt, and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The Second High Penal Court in the western province of İzmir ruled on July 25 to move Brunson from prison to house arrest by imposing judicial control decision. Read more here.

By Jacon Aitken - Posted at 2 Kingdomz 4 Life : These are the people that Lori Alexander follows . Alexander also believes you don’t need to ask God for forgiveness if you are a Christian (or maybe you do. It’s hard to follow her argument, which isn’t surprising since prairie muffin LARPers shouldn’t be doing theology). Again, my goal is to warn people about getting caught up in movements like this. Sure, her original article had some good advice–advice that even Southern Baptists were saying with TruLoveWaits decades ago. But you know what you didn’t see in that article? The New Birth. The inner principle of regeneration. Forgiveness. Do you know why you didn’t see that? Because quasi-reconstructionist LARPers don’t really preach on grace, or forgiveness, or the gospel. And I’ve known women who were virgins when they married and then became adulteresses afterwards, so that gives the lie to her “If you remain a virgin you will get the right man/woman.” Read more her

By Tyler O'Neil - Posted at PJ Media : On Saturday, Robert A. J. Gagnon, a prominent Christian scholar on the topic of Bible sexuality, spoke out about being blocked on Facebook for a second time. Both times, he posted about how LGBT activism pushes sexual perversion, as defined by the Bible. Both times, he was blocked on Facebook for "hate speech." He spoke with PJ Media about the overarching issue: redefining "hate" to silence conservative views on sexuality. "The greatest threat to our free speech and free exercise of religion comes from zealous advocates of the 'LGBTQ' agenda who appear to rule FB, Google, and Amazon," Gagnon told PJ Media Saturday. Gagnon, who holds a Ph.D. in Pauline theology and sexuality from Princeton Theological Seminary, has published " The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics ." As his church, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), has moved toward the LGBT side, Gagnon split with Pittsbur

Posted at Reformation Scotland : We all long for a genuinely peaceful satisfaction in life. Yet in our society of conspicuous consumption, discontent and wanting more and better seem to be valued more. Lifestyle gurus know this and they urge people to be content with who they are and what they have whilst still striving for their goals. Think positively they say, practice gratitude (to no one in particular) be proud of what you have achieved. But this isn’t real contentment because it depends on ourselves and our feelings. It’s a temporary and often imagined state. We need something that transcends not only our immediate circumstances but also ourselves and this brief changeable life. We were not made to live for ourselves or the things of time. We were made for God and for eternity. That’s why we will never be truly content without godliness. This is what the Apostle Paul says. People make the great mistake of “supposing that gain is godliness” (1 Timothy 6:5). Some think that p

By Al Baker - Posted at Banner of Truth : Have you noticed the many sermons, the many books and blogs telling the church of Jesus that our purpose is to reweave the culture? Behind these statements is the idea that our world, as we know, is permanent. While they readily admit the world’s fallen state, they still say the church’s role is to labor for the redemption of culture. That is, we are to make this world a better place. This is to come they say, by practising social justice, racial reconciliation through progressive, statist, identity politics. To be fair, some who are teaching this also speak of the importance of evangelism, but they nonetheless are urging a two-fold kingdom initiative. More specifically, they are urging us, as the church of Jesus, to seek justice, reconciliation, and reparations for victims of violence, oppression, or racism; to preserve God’s creation through Green energy initiatives; to transform social and cultural systems, and to labor for the removal

Posted at The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 18, 2018 Pastor Andrew Brunson Returned to Turkish Prison “The government of Turkey continues to make a mockery of justice in its treatment of Pastor Brunson,” said USCIRF Vice Chair Kristina Arriaga WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) today condemned a Turkish court’s decision to return Pastor Andrew Brunson, an American citizen and leader of a small Protestant Christian church, to prison to await a fourth hearing on October 12, 2018. Pastor Brunson has been unjustly detained in Turkey since October 7, 2016 on false terrorism and espionage related charges. USCIRF Vice Chair Kristina Arriaga attended today’s hearing in Aliaga, Turkey. USCIRF has condemned the charges against Pastor Brunson and has called for his immediate release. “The government of Turkey continues to make a mockery of justice in its treatment of Pastor Brunson,”said Vice

By Mike Ratliff - Posted at Possessing the Treasure: 5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you, 6 namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. 7 For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain, 8 but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, 9 holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, so that he will be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict. Titus 1:5-9 (NASB) It doesn’t take very long for me to discern whether the person I am dealing with through personal interaction is truly God’s man or woman or is a pretender. That personal interaction is necessary for me to see the true nature and focus of the p

By Tim Challies When I was a kid, my family once watched a movie that included vivid scenes of persecution against the earliest Christians. I remember lying awake at night, terrified by these images of Christians burning in the streets and being fed to the lions. I couldn’t help but imagine myself in the place of those beleaguered believers. At the time, I assumed they were being persecuted simply for being Christians, but as I’ve studied early church history, I’ve come to realize it’s not quite so simple. And as simplicity gives way to reality, I see there are some important lessons we can learn today through that early church persecution. The earliest Christians lived within the Roman Empire, and, despite what you may have heard, Rome was surprisingly tolerant of other faiths. As they conquered the surrounding nations, they would rarely demand full loyalty to the traditional Roman religion or gods. They would allow people to continue to worship their own gods in pretty much the

Posted at Voice of the Persecuted : ( Voice of the Persecuted ) Andrew Brunson is an American citizen who lived in Turkey for over 20 years. He led a small church in Izmir and, along with his wife, had raised their three children there. The couple then decided to apply for permanent residency in this nation of people whom they greatly loved. On Oct. 7, they were called to a local police station with no worries beliving they were finally approved for residency. However, the Brunson’s were detained and his wife released shortly after. Andrew’s arrest followed the failed coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2016. The Turkish government is using evidence based on the testimony of a “secret witness’ against Andrew who maintains his innocence. Now Andrew is facing the third hearing of his trial, next week. Some are calling the case a sham trial to force the U.S. to hand over Fethullah Gülen , believed to be the mastermind of the July 2016 failed coup by President Erdogan’s go

By Rut Etheridge III - Posted at Gentle Reformation : Have you ever, even as a Christian, found yourself rooting for people to break God’s commandments and even cheering when they achieve their Satanic aspirations? This is far easier to do, and therefore far more common, than we may realize. Years ago, my wife and I were watching a very cleverly written, well-acted sitcom. We were cracking up every bit as much as the production team behind it would want us to. Then after a moment’s reflection, she turned to me and said with sadness and a bit of shock, “Do you realize we were just laughing at what God hates?” At the time, I didn’t, of course. But to this day, her words remain like a scar in my heart, a faithful wound from my very best friend. It’s so easy, in the midst of being entertained, for us to enjoy and approve the life-destroying ideas, words and actions which wrecked the world and which cost Christ his life as he gave himself to free us from them. This past weekend I had

By Francis A. Schaeffer - Posted at Crossway : Lex Rex The Founding Fathers of the United States (in varying degrees) understood very well the relationship between one’s world view and government. John Witherspoon (1723-1794), a Presbyterian minister and president of what is now Princeton University, was the only pastor to sign the Declaration of Independence. He was a very important man during the founding of the country. He linked the Christian thinking represented by the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) with the work he did both on the Declaration of Independence and on countless very important committees in the founding of the country. This linkage of Christian thinking and the concepts of government were not incidental but fundamental. John Witherspoon knew and stood consciously in the stream of Samuel Rutherford, a Scotsman who lived from 1600-1661 and who wrote Lex Rex in 1644. Lex rex means law is king—a phrase that was absolutely earthshaking. Prior to

By K. Allan Blume - Posted at BRnow.org : Forty-eight of 50 North Carolina senators signed a senatorial statement urging the Turkish government to release Pastor Andrew Brunson. A Presbyterian minister from Black Mountain, N.C., Brunson has been imprisoned by Turkey since Oct. 7, 2016. He was arrested and wrongly associated with a group that Turkish authorities say was responsible for a coup attempt against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in July 2016. Brunson is a missionary who lives in Turkey. The 62-page indictment also charges Brunson, who had served openly as a Christian pastor in Turkey for the past 23 years, with committing an act of terrorism by spreading the Christian faith in the majority-Muslim country, according to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, who “strongly condemns” the charges. Brunson denies all charges. “I’ve never done anything against Turkey,” Brunson said in his trial. “I love Turkey. I’ve been praying for Turkey for

By Dan Doriani - Posted at Place for Truth : Over the last year, I have interviewed a number of believers who are trying to love their neighbors and change the way work is done in their field. Listening to them, I have come to a clearer understanding of the way social reform works. Generally speaking, people who bring positive reform normally have high skill, passion for a cause, a position that guarantees that they will be heard, and an ability to win allies. Beyond that, I see men and women whose faith spontaneously shapes their work. That makes sense. After all, the Lord reveals his love through the work of Christ and then pours his love into our hearts. As a result, we obey God's great commandment ( Matt. 22:37-39 ), "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." He continues "And there is a second like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" As Paul says, we are saved by fai

Posted at Voice of the Persecuted: VOP Note: For the past 5 years, Nigerian Christian leaders and rights activists have been trying warn the world that a genocide was taking place against the Christians in the North. The barbaric acts of jihadist groups, Boko Haram and Fulani Herdsmen, still continue unabated as more than 6000 Christians have been killed since the start of 2018. Where is the international concern and outcry? ( Raymond Ibrahim ) —In what the Christian Association of Nigeria is calling a “pure genocide,” 238 more Christians were killed and churches desecrated by Muslims last week in the west African nation. According to a joint statement by the Christian Association, an umbrella group of various Christian denominations, “There is no doubt that the sole purpose of these attacks is aimed at ethnic cleansing, land grabbing and forceful ejection of the Christian natives from their ancestral land and heritage.” The statement condemned the recent attacks, “where over 20

By Shane Vander Hart - Posted at Truth In American Education : Last month I wrote about state takeovers of school districts . I think they centralize power at the state level thereby diminishing local control in education. I also don’t think they work. Dr. Domingo Morel, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University, ascribed a rather nefarious purpose behind them. At The Conversation he wrote : Why does there appear to be a sudden interest in state takeovers of local school districts in the South? Have Southern governors figured out the blueprint for improving education in urban communities, predominantly occupied by people of color? Hardly. I would argue that these governors have discovered a blueprint for the economic and political disempowerment of their urban centers. ... Continue reading...

By Sam Thomas, Curator of History, Culture & Heritage Commission of York County: Coming predominantly from former homes in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia, the first permanent European settlers began arriving in the area west of the Catawba River during the 1750s. These settlers were overwhelmingly Scots-Irish Presbyterians who traveled here by way of the "Great Wagon Road." Allied by both blood and religious affiliations, the Scots-Irish pioneers moved through the Shenandoah Valley and the present-day towns of Winchester, Lexington, and Roanoke in Virginia, and eventually pushed south to Salisbury, North Carolina. From here they drifted southward along the Catawba into South Carolina. In order to set the stage for the 1780 Presbyterian Rebellion, we first need to take a look at the circumstances which drew these people to the "Back Country." Problems for the Scots-Irish began in Northern Ireland and the Ulster Plantation in the early 1700s. Chief amon

In 1776, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams proposed this image for the Great Seal of the United States. The image depicts Pharaoh’s army drowning as Moses closes the Red Sea upon them, while the pillar of fire guides God’s chosen people. The motto suggests that Moses’ actions (and those of the American Revolutionaries) were sanctioned by God. Source: Library of Congress. By Richard Gardiner - Posted at the  Journal of the American Revolution : Though the events transpired almost a quarter of a millenium ago, the shelves down at the local Barnes & Noble bookstore routinely continue to display freshly researched, written, and published histories of the American Revolution, the founding fathers, and the genesis of the United States. [1] Yet there remains an element of the American founding era that is routinely underrepresented in these volumes—the role of religion. It is a factor of the Revolution that many historians minimize. The revolution, they mainta

A Transcription - Posted at the National Archives ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In Congress, July 4, 1776. The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America , When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that 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.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these e

Posted at Apologetics Press : July 3, 1776 The [fourth] day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable Epocha, in the History of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more. You will think me transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. I am well aware of the Toil and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I trust in God W

Protestors on their way to Plateau state governor’s residence in Jos, Nigeria. (Morning Star News) Posted at Morning Star News: JOS, Nigeria (Morning Star News) – An Assemblies of God Nigeria pastor, his wife and son were among at least 218 people killed in Muslim Fulani herdsmen attacks on predominantly Christian areas near Jos on June 23-25, a denominational leader said. Two days after the general superintendent of the AG-Nigeria denomination, the Rev. Chidi Okoroafor, reported the deaths of the Rev. Musa Choji and family members in the Barkin Ladi area near Jos, the federal government on Thursday (June 28) ordered the arrest of a pastor who organized protests of the killings, Christian leaders said. The Rev. Isa Nenman, a pastor in Jos, was arrested on Thursday after the protests reportedly resulted in property destruction when he led demonstrators to the Government House, the residence of the governor of Plateau state, on Wednesday (June 27). Nenman is northern zone chairma