Talk of JESUS .com

Tag: Islam

Denominations / Why can’t we all just get along?
It’s a great question isn’t it? And from this street-level philosopher we might extrapolate questions like: “Why can’t all the church just get along?” or “Why can’t churches of ALL denominations just get along?” or “Shouldn’t OUR church teach tolerance of all poor street philosophers and inclusively preach THEIR philosophies from every religion?”

THEIR Two-faced ‘Tolerance‘

“Why can’t all the church just get along?”

Because we are ALL sinners. WE accuse the brethren of OTHER denominations while lacking discernment of our own fledgling flock of philosophers.

And this is NO different for the philosophers who deceivingly call THEMSELVES a ‘church.’

Returning to close examination of the PLANK in OUR own ‘evangelical christian’ eye, let’s review the theological discernment shared in our previous two Saturday Posts:

Christology and Theology may be at odds with prevailing social philosophy which USES a loose interpretation of the Bible to fill the house with non-committal christians.

The shift from ‘accepting the existence of different views’ to ‘acceptance of different views’ .. is subtle in form, but massive in substance. To accept that a different or opposing position exists is one thing; to accept the position itself means that one is no longer opposing it.
D.A. Carson, The Intolerance of Tolerance

Something’s wrong with our church!

(So why not RECALL it & fix it?) QUESTION what OUR church teaches AND build it back to be all-inclusive and tolerant.

In deconstruction everything is a SOCIAL construction, including the church.
Darrell Harrison – Just Thinking podcast

As a watchman on the wall Harrison points to the strategy of deconstructionist everythingologist preachers of the false gospel:

Once WE accept the philosophy that the CHURCH is a SOCIALLY constructed system, NOT a divinely ordained institution that originated in the mind of God..
- THEN the church falls into disbelief.
- CONSEQUENTLY these fledgling lambs of the faith will be led to the slaughter.
Deconstructionists
- ASSUME a HUMAN faith which WE need to fix.
- YET try to follow the illogic of philosophers who preach that:
  - ALL of these DENOMINATIONS ‘can just get along.‘
Denominations / Divide and Conquer

Why the attack on Christians?
- Christians claim the LARGEST RELIGION in the world! [< 2 BILLION souls]
  - Worldwide about three out of every ten people are Christians.
    In the U.S. about three out of four people claim Christianity as their faith (mostly Protestant) &
    In Mexico and Brazil about 9 out of 10 claim Christianity (mostly Roman Catholic)
  - Roman Catholics are the largest denomination with about one billion communicants worldwide.
  - 12% of the world population claim Orthodox Christian denominations with about 40% of the 260 million living in officially atheistic Russia.
  - ~800 MILLION Protestant Christians [37% of the world population] can be divided into < 40,000 denominations
    Source: for more info
Major Monotheistic Religions

Why can’t believers in the One God just get along?
- Islam claims almost 2 billion worshipers of Mohammed
  - Sunni Islam is the largest denomination with about <85% or about 1.6 billion followers
  - Shi’ism or Shia Islam is the second-largest Muslim denomination and divided into additional sub-denominations.
  - SEE THEIR intolerance toward OTHER religions below.
- Judaism, the original Abrahamic faith prior to Jesus Christ (1st c. A.D.) and Muhammed (7th c. A.D.), retains just a remnant of the world’s population with >15 MILLION worshipers, further divided into several religious schools of thought, culture and worship.
Church Divided

Catholic ‘kata-holos’ – universal
- IF Catholic = Universal, how then can ‘christians‘ call BOTH the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox a ‘Christian Church?’
  - Did the fall of Rome or any empire of the world separate Christians from Christ?
- Yet IF Universal = Catholic + EVERYBODY ELSE; the PHILOSOPHER then becomes the Pope with no clothes, as well as a stone ‘thinker’ with failed logic.
  - The religion of the Universal ‘Church’ is NO religion except ALL religions.
- WHY can’t YOU Christians and non-Christians all just get along?
  - The Agnostic acknowledges that GOD IS; but like so many other truths, THEY cannot prove it.
- On the other face of the religion of philosophy, an A-theist by definition professes a religion AGAINST the god of their philosophy.
  - ANY reasonably constructed religion accepted except the intolerance of Christians!
WE will RECONSTRUCT from OUR common ground.

Let’s invite the Pope to confess OUR sins against indigenous Americans of the past. He could wear a chief’s bonnet in place of his Roman MITRE. (Just instruct his holiness NOT to mention Jesus Christ.) He could help save OUR environment.

AND cultural Jews – they’re like us, so we can study their original faith. (Just don’t mention that Jesus called some of them ‘whitewashed tombs‘ or Christian claims that JESUS and the Father are ONE, or many other intolerant things JESUS said.)

Of course we have common ground with our Muslim brothers. (Maybe we can get them to give women some rights if we accept some of their very good examples of regular faith.) WE even know some at work (and they are all hard workers) who have even accepted Christians into THEIR Islamic faith and married into THEIR Muslim family.

Religion is a dirty word in the 21st century public square and an evangelical Christian the most offensive icon of intolerance to be mocked in social media.
Roger@TalkofJESUS.com

Other Faiths & Many Truths (not to mention ‘gods‘)

Let’s talk about culture. (WE can create it better.)
- The CURRENT WORLD POPULATION includes nearly 8 BILLION human souls.
- There are 18.6 million Asian Americans living in the US, making up 6% of the US population
  - Nearly 400 million Christians live in Asia (5 regions), while just 230 million Christians live in N. America.
- China has a population of 1.4 BILLION souls and although officially the PEOPLE are ATHEISTS, more Christians evangelize their faith in China than in much of the U.S.
  - Unofficially, Chinese folk religions comprise ~22% of the population, Buddhists ~14%, Christians about 5% (~74 MILLION disciples of Christ) PLUS 52% of the Chinese population are “unaffiliated” with ANY religion [probably safest even for many Christians]
    (Could the intolerance of evangelical Christians in America become the official ‘freedom FROM religion’ in the U.S.?)
  - Open Doors USA estimates the number of Christians in China to be 96,700,000
    READ more from this source about Christian Persecution
- #India, a mostly English-speaking country [in addition to Hindi] increasingly embraces Hinduism
  - with 1.25 BILLION believers worldwide.
  - A Pew research study comparing religions shows a growing intolerance of ‘minority monotheistic religions’ such as Islam & Christianity.
  - The persecution of Christians in India is intensifying as Hindu extremists aim to cleanse the country of their presence and influence. Open Doors ranks the level of persecution as comparable to that of Iran and India’s Islamist neighbors of Pakistan & Afghanistan.
Intolerant Karma

Not only do a majority of Hindus in India (77%) believe in karma, but an identical percentage of Muslims do, too.
A third of Christians in India (32%) – together with 81% of Hindus – say they believe in the purifying power of the Ganges River, a central belief in Hinduism.
Source: PEW RESEARCH CENTER

YET note intolerance of many surveyed in 2019-2020 in India:
- ..members of India’s major religious communities often don’t feel they have much in common with one another.
- Many Indians, across a range of religious groups, say it is very important to stop people in their community from marrying into other religious groups.
  - Roughly two-thirds of Hindus in India want to prevent interreligious marriages of Hindu women (67%) or Hindu men (65%).
  - Even larger shares of Muslims feel similarly: 80% say it is very important to stop Muslim women from marrying outside their religion, and 76% say it is very important to stop Muslim men from doing so.
Who is my neighbor?

Denominations of Neighborhoods

It’s NOT just the Church which divides itself, but socially constructed systems of cities, communities, clubs, political parties, schools, work.. and yes, shunned minorities (like Christians) NOT tolerated by the majority.

To further quote the PEW study:

Indians, then, simultaneously express enthusiasm for religious tolerance and a consistent preference for keeping their religious communities in segregated spheres – they live together separately. These two sentiments may seem paradoxical, but for many Indians they are not.

The study goes on to mention the mythical ‘melting pot’ approach of ‘other’ countries. NO forced integration there, just two-faced tolerance of paradoxical convenience.

WHY can’t WE all just get along?

Integration of culture (or religion) risks ruining the unique values of individuals, as well as trespassing upon any inviolable Truth part and parcel of those individuals who cling to our worship of the Lord our God and Jesus Christ.

IF our evangelical Christian denomination is NOT different from the religions of the world, the philosophers of humanism, the teachings of the false prophets or the inclusiveness of all the idols which are NOT God, THEN WHY would any soul from another culture come to the community of faith in CHRIST JESUS or fellowship of love and worship of God by grace?

IF our GOSPEL of eternal life in the Lord Jesus Christ promised in Scripture is ONLY available to those who will repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, WHY would a denomination or church tolerate ANY teaching which might lead many lost sheep into the dark deceptions of death’s doctrines?

so that the name of God and our doctrine will not be slandered.

1 Timothy 6 – Instructions to Those Who Serve
```
If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself. 
- I Timothy 6:3-6 New King James Version 
```
So withdraw yourself from such as cannot tolerate OUR intolerance FOR refusing to once again crucify Christ.
September 10, 2022
The Time Is Near For Our Church – Smyrna
The Revelation of Jesus Christ

John to the seven churches

Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.

“Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, … to Smyrna…

“Fear not, I am the first and the last, 18 and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. 19 Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this.

20 As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

Christ, our risen Lord and Savior holds in His right hand the angels of the churches. Christ, our returning Lord and Savior stands in the presence of His golden churches – the believers to be taken-up along with those who have gone before us.

Yet each letter to the churches is specific to a group of believers: praise for faithfulness and call to continued faith. For not all who say, “Lord, lord,” will be taken-up. Not all who say, “Lord, lord,” will stand as a light of witness as a lampstand on His right. For some will be separated to the King’s left and He will say of those who did not glimmer with the light of Jesus, “I never knew you.”

And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. – Matthew 25:46 KJV

Therefore: The warnings for the seven churches are addressed to the saints of every generation until the last.

You with ears to hear, let the scripture of Revelation speak to your eternal soul.

To the Church in Smyrna

8 “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.

9 “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not fear what you are about to suffer.

Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation.

Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’

“DO NOT FEAR what you are about to suffer…”

Does the Revelation of Jesus Christ through the Apostle John encourage you?

The encouragement for the Church at Smyrna was for upcoming, soon-to-be fulfilled prophesy in the first century. However if any 21st c. Christian dare believe such persecution of Christians for our faith in Christ Jesus has ceased, think again.

A glance at the map of Turkey above, the headline of Urumiah from the 20th c. and the burning church in Egypt just weeks ago ought to convince Christians that persecution and suffering of Christians in contested areas of the world is actually on the increase.

4 weeks ago – Egypt

The encouragement of Revelation is actually for a FINAL BATTLE between Christ and the enemies of the Cross, led by the Devil, that great deceiver of the world (including the world news that filters to our non-consideration).

Jesus Christ reveals:

You may be tested. You will have tribulation.

Be faithful unto death.

Suppose you are a Christian in Turkey, Egypt, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia or one of many other countries that persecute Christians where old men and young thugs stand boldly against the love and forgiveness of Christ Jesus.

Would you be encouraged?

The Saints of the Church of Smyrna were encouraged not in life; but in death!

The Church is encouraged to withstand every persecution for the Name and Cross of Jesus Christ. In fact, Jesus’ promise is for the crown of Life – that is, eternal life.

Our encouragement is that regardless of analysis of the Battle now, the outcome is assured. In the Last Battle, JESUS WINS. (See end of story.)

+

The facts of Islam and Jihad go well beyond tolerance. 9/11/2001 was just an opening salvo of just one more battle in a patient war by the enemy Satan.

Our memory of history is both short and tainted.

Discern for yourself some of what you will not hear from the world:

Timeline

Historical facts say that Islam, including Muhammad, launched their own Crusades against Christianity long before the European Crusades.

The word “crusade” (derived from the Latin word for “cross“) in an Islamic context means a holy war or jihad. (Same war; different leader.)
- 630 Two years before Muhammad’s death of a fever, he launches the Tabuk Crusades, in which he led 30,000 jihadists against the Byzantine Christians.
- 635 Muslim Crusaders besiege and conquer of Damascus. (3 years before capturing Jerusalem)
- 673-678 Arabs besiege Constantinople, capital of Byzantine Empire
- 680 Massacre of Hussein (Muhammad’s grandson), his family, and his supporters in Karbala, Iraq.
- 691 Dome of the Rock is completed in Jerusalem, only six decades after Muhammad’s death.
- Much more on link above.
Persecution of the 19th & 20th c. (partial)

Voice of the Martyrs – a current look at Turkey & other “restricted” nations (Click on any country for detail. Here is current detail for Turkey.)

Turkey has experienced an ongoing political struggle between secular proponents, urban moderates and rural Islamist forces vying for government control. The country has been officially secular since 1924, but 97 percent of the population is Muslim. Questions about the role of religion in society dominate public discourse. The current president is a proponent of political Islam, and there are few signs that Turkey will soon embrace true religious freedom.

Category: Hostile Nation
Religion: Muslim 96.6%, Christian 0.2%
Ideology: Islam
Head of State: President Abdullah Gul

Despite government claims and a constitutional guarantee of religious freedom, Christians do not enjoy freedom of religion in many areas. Politicians, police, Islamic secularists and the growing Islamist movement are hostile to Christianity, and foreign missionaries are seen as a threat. Local officials often refuse to issue licenses to new churches. Turkish culture has a deep prejudice against Christians, and many adhere to the maxim that to be Turkish is to be Muslim. Conversion is not technically illegal, but converts have been charged with “insulting Turkishness.” Recently, persecution has increased. Christians frequently experience discrimination, slander, personal attacks and attacks against churches. VOM supports the growing persecuted church and Christian radio programming.

+

God will judge. Christ IS victorious.

Christians throughout the world must remain awake on the wall.

What begins with subtlety is masked as tolerance and covered with ignorance.

The result is false security, false government, false faith, and fallen nations.

We are fallen sinners redeemed in the Blood of Christ Jesus, Who was and IS, and will return in victory.

While we remain on watch, let us pray for these many persecuted Christians throughout the world.

11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’

+

NEXT: Pergamum
October 2, 2013
EMPIRE Fallen: Church Divided – Part 2

9 August, AD 2013 – This time in history.

Genesis 1:2a King James Version – And the earth was without form, and void…

‘without form’ – tohuw – place of chaos;

“Most history is untold and unknown to most.

We look at history as a timeline of what someone has suggested has relevance to our own lives.

AD abbreviation – Anno Domini (used to indicate that a date comes the specified number of years after the traditional date of Christ’s birth). Forgotten in secular timelines.

+

AD 753 – AD 1806 — The Holy Roman Empire

By the time of its end, the Holy Roman Empire was far from holy, had nothing to do with Rome and evolved slowly from powerful Empire of Charlemagne to a powerless attempt to keep title of sovereignty from Napoleon. The sometime anarchy from power plays of royalty and church leadership was just one facet of a complex schism of the Church with political alliances divided between Rome in the West and Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem in the East.

+

AD 1375– AD 1378 The War of the Eight Saints, carried on with spates of unprecedented cruelty to civilians…

9 August, in the year of our Lord 1378, French bishops declared Urban VI’s election as pope invalid. This began the great schism in which two and then three popes claimed the Holy See of Rome at once. Once in office, Urban (ca. 1318–1389) had become overbearing.

1378 A.D to 1417 A.D. – Western Schism or Papal Schism was a split within the Catholic Church. Two men simultaneously claimed to be the true pope, driven by politics rather than any theological disagreement. The Western Schism is sometimes called the Great Schism, although this term is also applied to the East–West Schism of 1054 A.D.

“Doubt still shrouds the validity of the three rival lines of pontiffs during the four decades subsequent to the still disputed papal election of 1378. This makes suspect the credentials of the cardinals created by the Roman, Avignon, and Pisan claimants to the Apostolic See.” ^[^3]

Urban was declared excommunicated by the French antipope and was called “the Antichrist“, while Catherine of Siena, defending Pope Urban, called the cardinals “devils in human form.

On the death of Charles of Naples in 1386, Urban contrived to take advantage of the anarchy which had ensued and in August 1388 Urban moved from Perugia with thousands of troops.

+

AD 1432 – Mehmed II was born in this capital of the Ottoman Empire. Islamic education had a great impact in molding the mindset of Mehmed and reinforcing his Muslim beliefs. He began to praise and promote the application of Sharia law.

The influence of Ak Şemseddin in Mehmed’s life became predominant from a young age, especially in the imperative of fulfilling his Islamic duty to overthrow the Byzantine empire by conquering Constantinople.^[5]

AD 1453 – The capture of Constantinople marked the end of the last remnant of the Roman Empire, an imperial state which had lasted for nearly 1,500 years. The Christian Church had been divided by the Great Schism of 1378 for less than 80 years and the enemy of Christ extends the political and religious power of Islam.

Edirne, in northwest Turkey located north of the Aegean Sea and south of the Black sea, was formerly known as Adrianople and borders areas of conquest between Rome and its invaders. During the existence of the Latin Empire of Constantinople, the Crusaders were decisively defeated by the Bulgarian Emperor Kaloyan in the battle of Adrianople (1205).

To be continued…

August 9, 2013