Category persecution

Mar 4 2013

Chinese Propaganda… in Our Christian Media!

I had written a post (here) about the online magazine Christianity Today, questioning whether it can be called Christian based on some the articles, editorials, and opinion pieces they publish.

So, it was not surprising to see an article in Christianity Today entitled “China Isn’t Trying to Wipe Out Christianity” which is basically an apologetic piece on the claim that persecution is really not that bad in China.

Having lived in communist Romania until age 13, and having seen the persecution methods employed by that government against my local church, I can testify that what I read in this article was a message influenced by communist propaganda.  The communist Romanians had freedom of speech, religion and assembly as part of their core values.  Allegedly. And theoretically.  But they were vehemently persecuting the existing ne0-Protestant churches for their FAITH under the banner of national security.  Any prayer meeting was seen as a national threat.  Every church was suspected of being a potential western ally.  Every faithful Christian was a potential revolutionary.  All of these to cover the real motive which was religious persecution.

They used the seemingly legitimate national defense excuse to accomplish their atheistic goals of suppressing the truth and stamping out religious practice.

And the propaganda disseminated in this article by Christianity Today follows some of the same old techniques we have seen in the former eastern communist bloc.  For example:

1. The government is really not after those practicing their faith in house churches.  Oh no.  They are after anti-government elements that pose a national threat… So I ask… National threat from whom?  Is the US or western Europe about to go to war with China? How ridiculous does that sound? Are they afraid that individual house cell meetings for prayer are going to topple a massive totalitarian government?  Even that is highly improbable!

2. The Chinese government is not persecuting the faith, they are trying to suppress protests which can be embarrassing.  So I ask… Why are Christians trying to protest in the first place if they are not persecuted for their faith?

3. The Chinese government is not persecuting Christians… only the ones who are trying to publicize human rights violations.  Again, when freedom of religion is suppressed, that is a human rights violation translating into religion persecution.

Quote from the article: “The point here is not in any way to minimize the seriousness of these cases, but simply to point out that these believers were not persecuted for their faith or even for belonging to a house church…”  This is exactly what the propaganda is!  That the persecution has nothing to do with faith but with anti-government activity.  We have seen this cover story time and time again in Romania.

This is an old trick and we are not going to fall for it!

Can we now see how ridiculous it is to blame Christian “trouble makers” to divert attention from the real underlying impetus of the atheist Chinese government, their real motive being the  persecution of the Christian faith? And Christianity Today is buying it despite multiple other reports and assessments with respect to the intense persecution of the faithful in China!

Even though Christianity Today may not (want to) discern the truth, we know that our brothers and sisters in China are suffering at the hands of an atheist totalitarian regime which wants to inhibit their faith in God.  We will continue to pray for these Christians and remember Matthew 5:10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

image credit

Feb 19 2013

There Is Nothing New in NBC’s Mocking of Jesus

What was NBC thinking?

What was Saturday Night Live (SNL) thinking when they mocked Jesus Christ in this skit (here) this past weekend? What possible reason could they have in doing this?

For the purpose of entertaining the masses, SNL/NBC is portraying Jesus as a revengeful post-resurrection Christ out on a murderous spree. There is gory, blasphemous killing and blood spilling everywhere to the delight and comic relief of the studio audience.  How low will NBC go to mock our Savior?

Dear Christians, this is nothing new.

NBC is merely borrowing an old Satanic technique showing that depravity and mockery are siblings.

Evangelist Luke tells us in chapter 22 how they mocked Jesus after His arrest:

63 The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?”

And Matthew details in chapter 27:

28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. 30 They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again.

NBC, enticed by Satan to obtain comedic value and ratings out of mocking Jesus, decided to go ahead and broadcast this clip for the world to see.  Unfortunately for them,  this clip will serve as eternal evidence on Judgement Day, evidence which will convict them before God.

Imagine if NBC/SNL did a skit linking Islam’s Mohammed to such images or to pedophilia.   They wouldn’t dare do such a thing because they fear for their lives.  They know that Christians respond differently from the followers of Mohammed, and that Christians do not respond violently to the mocking of their faith.

Should we be offended and protest against NBC?  No.  This is expected.  The work of Christ is based on mockery and death.  That is how he took our sins upon Himself, and apostle Paul teaches us that we must identify ourselves with the sufferings of Christ as we are united with Christ and hidden in Him.

Satan will continue to mock Jesus.

The world will do the same.

By doing this they will mock His followers as well, which will continue and intensify until His glorious return.

Dec 28 2012

Hated by All in Nigeria

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXuUu-6Oels

I wrote about the vicious and deadly assaults against Christians in Nigeria here and how westerners cannot fully understand what these martyrs are going through.

This video published by the Voice of the Martyrs USA profiles Suleiman Abdulai, a Nigerian Christian who converted from Islam.  His Muslim family urged him to deny Jesus’ name and even tried to kill him before finally disowning him.  Although faith in Christ cost Suleiman his family, worldly possessions and reputation, he gained everything by taking up Christ’s cross.

It is eye-opening to see how he describes the mentality of the those practicing Islam in Nigeria.

The video opens with this statement and lays the foundation for the whole interview:

“When you persecute or kill a Christian, there is a place for you in heaven with Allah, so this makes every Muslim want to fulfill their desire to do what the Koran says… it is part of the worship of Islam.”

Dec 26 2012

In Our Season of Joy We Pray for Nigerian Christians

We live in a country where we can still freely worship God without having to worry about losing our physical life, unlike the early Christians and many Christians across the Globe.

In Nigeria, having the courage and fortitude to proclaim the Christian faith means one may ultimately pay with his or her life for such proclamation, especially during major Christian holidays.  Such was the case for two Christmas seasons now.  Last year 44 Christians were killed while attending church service (report), and two days ago 12 Christians were massacred in two separate church attacks (report).  Muslim extremists have made it their life mission and service to their god to accomplish such carnage as directed by their scripture:

9:123 “Believers, fight the unbelievers who are near you. Let them find firmness in you.”  

2:193-“Fight against them (unbelievers) until there is no dissension, and the religion is for Allah. Fight until no other religion exists but Islam.”

These facts stand uncontested and we cannot understand their gravity until we put ourselves in the position of these Christian martyrs and their families.  Can you imagine singing “Silent Night” during the Christmas Eve service, and all of a sudden having full automatic fire ravaging the audience of worshipers? Or a car bomb blowing up the church?  These are daily fears for Nigerian Christians.  When they confess Christ as God Incarnate, and His death and resurrection as the only way to salvation, they understand they signed up for possible martyrdom.

They read, understand, and take God’s Word at face value in John 16:2 “a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.”  They understand this verse as none of us can because their neighbors are killing them as a service to Allah.

They understand martyrdom just like Peter understood his upcoming martyrdom.  The Lord hinted at this in John 21 when He told Peter:

18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he [Peter] was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”

Just like Peter glorified God with his death by upside down crucifixion, so these Nigerian martyrs glorify God with their last breath.  And so year after year, Christmas after Christmas, Easter after Easter, they continue to go to church and worship the God of their salvation despite the threats and possibility of death.

These stories will not make the front page on CNN or Fox News sites.  This become the norm in many African and South East Asian countries… it is not extraordinary enough to be worthy of prime time coverage and discussion.

But we know about them.  We pray for them and the families left behind.  We know they are now with the Lord “and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” (Rev 7:17)

In our season of joy, we must pray for these Christian martyrs and their families.

Dec 12 2012

War on Christmas (part 2)

We pick up on this theme from here, and we turn our attention to an organization named American Atheists which has declared an intellectual war on religion, especially Christianity.

They were founded by Madalyn Murray O’Hare, the litigant in the Supreme Court case responsible for removing prayer from schools in the early 1960’s, and their current membership numbers in the thousands.

If you have seen offensive billboards toward Jesus while driving around, it is highly likely they are sponsored by this group. They have made the news recently due to a coordinated campaign against the message of Christmas, calling Jesus a “myth.”

Said their president: “We know that a large population of ‘Christians’ are actually atheists who feel trapped in their family’s religion. If you know god is a myth, you do not have to lie and call yourself ‘Christian’ in order to have a festive holiday season. You can be merry without the myth, and indeed, you should”

As a result they have launched a billboard campaign called “keep the merry, dump the myth.”

It is sad to realize that these people have to fight a belief system in order to place themselves on the map. They don’t realize that they have their own religion, a set of beliefs and principles called “atheism,” and they have their own gatherings (churches), and their own organizations professing their beliefs. Sounds like a full-fledged religion to me. Moreover, they are ironically using our celebration of the birth of Jesus as an occasion for their own merry celebration!

As you see these billboards at busy intersections and public squares, keep in mind that we are not engaged in a fight against an atheist organization. We are clenched in a spiritual war against the forces of darkness:

“12For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm”(Ephesians 6:12-13).

Intellectual persecution against Christians is here disguised under “separation of church and state” and it will continue to progress to more significant levels. We therefore need to “stand firm” and proclaim the Gospel with love and without shame.

Nov 26 2012

War on Christmas (part 1)

One of the nativity scenes at Palisades Park on display last Christmas. City Council’s unanimous voted June 12 put an end to the nearly 60-year tradition.

After 60 years of nativity scenes being displayed on public ground in the beach city of Santa Monica, CA, it appears that the tradition of erecting a booth about Jesus’s birth in a city park is coming to a close.  After a prolonged battle in the courts, the lawyer for the group of churches who are fighting atheist plaintiffs to keep the tradition alive has said that the battle has been lost.

One of the nativity organizers said:

“It’s a very sad day when a small number of people with an axe to grind, people who do not like Christianity, and who do not like God, are able to prevail by manipulating rules to censor our message from the public place where it has been displayed for the enjoyment of millions of people for nearly 60 years”

“It’s even sadder that a city government would allow itself to go along with this effort to try to snuff out a message that a small group of people did not agree with”

I will post more examples of this war on Christianity before the upcoming holiday season in the hope that it will sound off an alarm for the Church that this is the beginning of legal persecution of against Christians.  Once again, the Church needs to wake up and realize this is happening and pursue all avenues to fight it.  It starts with prayer and showing love to our neighbor, but it can move into the political and legal arena where we must vote for Christian principles, and possibly fight atheist groups in the courts.

The biggest irony here is that a country that upholds freedom of speech, and religion and who preaches religious tolerance is now beginning to turn against the religion of most of its founding fathers.  George Washington himself said in a speech to Delaware Indians in 1779: “You do well to wish to learn our arts and our ways of life and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention.” 

If the president of the United States would say this today to any group of people there might be riots and looting in San Francisco and Berkley in response, and there would be calls to impeach him.  But he would never say it, because in a TV interview he said he does not believe that [the religion of] Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation.  Despite this statement, he claims to be a Christian.

As believers in biblical truth, we must understand the reasons for these attacks against Christianity.  The proclamation of gospel truth makes unrepentant sinners very uncomfortable.  The Church’s stand against depraved lifestyles and sin makes it seem accusatory in the eyes of unbelievers, and this is a natural progression of what Jesus stated in Matt 10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.”  

The Word of God is a sword that cuts deep into the soul of the sinner.  There are only two possible outcomes: 1. the sinner is convicted by the Holy Spirit and will repent, or 2. he will be hardened and become an enemy of the Gospel and those who proclaim the Gospel.  The ones who remain ignorant, when pushed hard they will probably also hate Christians for teaching the truth about their depravity.  We are now seeing more and more the enemies of the Gospel fighting back against truth.

It is time for the Church to proclaim the Gospel boldly and continue to fight for its right to do so!

Nov 15 2012

Legal Attacks Against Christians in the US on the Rise

In the wake of the ungodly election cycle we just went through, a series of stunning lawsuits against churches and Christian organizations started to take shape within the legal system.  This may be the first time in the history of the United States that a systematic approach has been undertaken to attack organizations of the Christian faith thru the courts.

One of the groups leading this coordinated charge is the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), an organization of 19,000 self-proclaimed non-theists (atheists and agnostics) who want to remove religious (but mainly Christian) influence from society.  Their main underlying argument in most of these cases is separation of church and state, as if the United States is a theocracy where the church is in charge of government.  Anytime a Christian symbol appears in public, they cry a reactionary “this is a violation of the separation of church and state!”

The FFRF has just sued Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for taking out full-page ads in the weeks leading up to election urging people to vote for pro-life candidates.  They are vehemently suing a number of Catholic bishops and parishes who instructed their members to vote based on religious principles involving issues like abortion and contraception mandates.

The October 7, 2012 event “Freedom Pulpit Sunday” where nearly 1,600 pastors decided to openly endorse life, biblical and family values and candidates from the pulpit seemed to have been the pivotal point that started this rage.

But wait… their bold tactic does not end there.   They have just demanded in the letter to the president that the words “so help me God” as well as the placing of the hand on the Bible be removed from the presidential inauguration…  again, based on the delusion that the church and state are one entity in the US!

The main goal of these attacks is to remove the non-profit status of churches and Christian organizations.  That is the goal… for now.  But I am predicting that we will quickly move to the phase of anti-bullying and hate speech legislation against pastors and churches who proclaim biblical truth.  And then Christians will face more than just monetary penalties.   They may face criminal charges and potentially prison for preaching against sin.

Christians in America need to wake up and pray for this nation and its leaders, so that God will not allow this nation to get to that point.  Persecution is coming to America and we need to anticipate it and get spiritually ready for it.