Tag: politics

  • The Demagogues of Democracy in an Idol-led Empire

    The Demagogues of Democracy in an Idol-led Empire

    Labor Day in 2023 of the Common Era

    What is more common in this Common Era of a 2024 Presidential election than demagogues landing like locusts on our popular propaganda screens like ants at a Labor Day picnic?

    Demagogue: a leader who makes use of popular prejudices and false claims and promises in order to gain power

    Trump is just one of many demagogues of democracy tooting his political horn on TikTok Twitter and other social media

    Of course, ‘the medium spin of the message is better than two candidates in the district.’

    US political HEADLINES IN THE HAND spun by paid pundits of unaccountable billionaires hiding behind action committees buying each vote AGAINST fellow demagogues of their political opposite extreme.

    What better day than Labor Day in the Common Era for commonly corrupt men of money to launch another campaign tirade of fear-mongering urging working stiffs on a rare day off to VOTE AGAINST whatever they should ideologically HATE?

    collage of worldly leaders - ACTS 2:40 "Be saved from this perverse generation.

    Party Platforms of an idolized past

    Or should I say: Political Party Platforms from an idealized ancient past?

    I’m not referring to historical parties from an idolized American past: Federalists, Whigs, Democrat-Republicans, Bull Moose or other independents. The ideals of foundational platforms of every party have always been somewhat overstated.

    Political parties once debated a platform of principles upon which their candidates for office could stand.

    Sometime in the 20th c. C.E. foundational Democratic and Republican party platforms and principles collapsed under the weight of PAC’s with polls of single issue influence destined to divide any great empire into the decay of its extreme excesses.

    A Common Era conclusion

    • WE THE PEOPLE of these UNITED STATES of AMERICA are no longer UNITED in the Common Era of our failed principles.
    • Nor are WE governed by a majority as one might imagine.

    Rather citizens of our once united states have been divided as spoil of partisan political victories as unwilling subjects of political kings appealing to the extremes of our discontent.

    Go ahead and do the math: 
    TOTAL number of citizens 18 or older [think 2020 US Census], 
    convert the % of 'registered' votes of the 'winner' into the actual total # of votes,
    USE the WINNING NUMBER of VOTES and DIVIDE any CANDIDATE TOTAL by the NUMBER of CITIZENS! (Registered, including NO SHOWS & ABSTENTIONS in addition to a LARGE # of US citizens who DO NOT EVEN REGISTER TO VOTE.)
    • A TRUE WINNER of a MAJORITY could claim a NUMBER = to HALF the census 18+ population, plus 1.
    • Does ANY national candidate for political office have such a majority mandate of US citizens? (Go ahead and name one!)
    • Our VOTE is bought and paid for by the politically powerful minority WE THE PEOPLE rarely see lining the pockets of our Representatives, Senators and Presidents.

    WE consequently conclude that NO principles of party will govern any newspeak fed to THE PEOPLE of our divided nation.

    Certainly not on such common occasions as Labor Day 2023 of the Common Era with so many candidates full of HEADLINE DEMAGOGUERY leading up to divisive 2024 elections.


    Historical Reminders

    • DEMOCRACY
      • from ancient Greece

    Alexander was considered ‘the Great’ after crushing democracy as the philosophers debated and ruled much of the world until his death just centuries Before Christ (BCE to you ‘Commoners).

    • REPUBLIC
      • from the Rome Before Christ (or B.C.E. for you evolved pagans)

    JULIUS CAESAR was an elected official of Rome’s idealistic Republic AND a general leading loyal Romans back from victory to claim Rome as its Caesar. (Most know of his demise on the Ides of March in 44 B.C.

    ROME ruled the world through its Caesars worshiped as gods among the gods. The ruthlessness of Rome’s Legions prevailed over the ideals of its Republic.

    7th century B.C.

    From Isaiah, a true Prophet of God after the fall of David & Solomon's Empire
    59:4 No one calls in righteousness, and no one seeks justice in truth.
    
    They trust in confusion and speak worthlessness;
    
    They conceive trouble and give birth to wickedness.
    
    7 Their feet run to evil,
    
    And they are quick to shed innocent blood;
    
    Their thoughts are thoughts of wickedness;
    
    Devastation and destruction are in their highways.
    

    Justice is turned back,

    And righteousness stands far away;

    For truth has stumbled in the street,

    And rightness cannot enter.

    So it is that truth is missing;

    And he who turns aside from evil makes himself plunder.

    Then Yahweh saw,

    And it was evil in His eyes that there was no justice.

    “A Redeemer will come to Zion,

    And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares Yahweh.

    Isaiah 59:14-15,20 LSB

    The Redeemer of Zion of those any who turn from sin — Before Christ and in these last days of our Lord dismissed as the Common Era — is JESUS a prophet, priest and king forever.

    The Ideological Enemy among US

    • COMMUNIST and
    • SOCIALIST

    USSR abbreviation for the UNION of SOCIALIST Soviet REPUBLICS.

    Stalin’s Communism will always cleanse the land of protagonist challengers who stand up to their walled-in autocracy.

    Socialism better describes the governmentaiization of money rather than the internment of the communes controlling the lives of its people.

    The cults of communism choose their own Caesars and the Republics of Religion will anoint their own gods.

    Roger@TalkofJESUS.com
    • Islamic Republics and Hindu Democracies fail in principle and in theory even as they proliferate and invade former strongholds of free but tolerant nations.
    • Capitalist Communists will invest in peace as currency of control in wars of attrition undermining the freedoms of competition.
    • The Atheist Tyrant embraces the religions of authoritarian rule.

    Demagogues of Labor Days in the C.E.

    Let US not deceive ourselves, even as Satan convinced man, ‘you will not die.’

    The righteous will live by faith, but which Labor Day speech of the Common Era will not shout out the unrighteous likes of the unrepentant faithless?

    A Proverb for Labor Day

    A worker’s appetite works for him;

    His mouth urges him on.

    A worthless man plots evil,

    and his speech is like a scorching fire.

    Proverbs 16:26 & 27 CSB

    And a closing consideration of Labor Day in the Common Era

    The demagogues of democracy will dictate what all will be required to do
    while the agendas of anarchy proclaim all of their gods.

    Roger@TalkofJESUS.com + Serving no Caesar in place of Christ our resurrected and living Redeemer and King
  • Is the Evangelical Christian?

    Is the Evangelical Christian?

    What’s YOUR image of the evangelical christian?

    What is it that they do? Where do YOU hear about them?

    How do YOU become one? (Would you even want to add YOUR name to a list of evangelical Christians?)

    This all-American anomaly does seem more prevalent in certain months of certain years. It’s practically an insult, isn’t it?

    Who is calling out these evangelical christians so visible in the media?

    Good News – Bad News

    First, the Good News.

    εὐαγγελιστής – Evangelist (noun) – The Evangelist brings good news! It’s the name given to the NT heralds of salvation through Christ who are not apostles.

    Philip and the Ethiopian official in his chariot on the road from Jerusalem in Gaza, reading the scroll of Isaiah before he is baptized

    Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” And Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said,

    “Do you understand what you are reading?”

    And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

    Acts of the Apostles 8:26-40 Legacy Standard Bible

    GOOD NEWS: Philip is a Biblical example of an Evangelical Christian.

    Evangelicals are preachers – those who have received their Gospel from the angels of God!

    Christians are called to proclaim Jesus Christ, preaching His Gospel Good News to those drawn by God to eternal life.

    For indeed we have had good news preached to us, even as they also did, but the word they heard didn’t profit them, because it wasn’t mixed with faith by those who heard.

    Hebrews 4:2 – HNV

    Now the Bad News (and it is two-fold).

    Many evangelical christians do NOT follow Jesus Christ

    1. Many who hear the Good News proclaimed will not benefit.
    2. Some who claim to bring their good news to all do not preach Christ. (Listen with caution to where these so-called evangelicals would lead you and their loyal herds into the turmoil of this world.)

    Listen to the sound reasoning of the Apostle Paul as he encourages believers of the Church at Corinth:

    But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

    For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’s sake. – 2 Corinthians 4:3-5 CSB

    A Christian Evangelical

    The authentic evangelical Christian claims no Lord other than Jesus Christ or agenda before the Gospel of Scripture.

    Roger@talkofJESUS.com

    The Gospel of Jesus Christ is foremost in the proclamation of the evangelical.

    • Political and cultural cause do not become a gospel for an authentic evangelical Christian.

    It is both true and troublesome that the label ‘Christians‘ was first used in Antioch (Acts 11:26) to malign followers of Jesus Christ compared to other religions and contemporarily used to claim or malign Jesus as a cause for or against culture unrelated to Christ.

    Not every evangelical is so, just because someone called them an ‘evangelical christian’ away from the context of worship.

    • The authentic evangelical worshiper will not ride every wave of contemporary culture or cling to cultural traditions of their past.
    • An authentic evangelical church does not blindly follow the vision of a pastor ahead of the Gospel which God has revealed in the Bible.
    • The authentic evangelical preacher does not substitute his own words for the true Gospel written in Scripture.

    What is it that authentic Evangelical Christians do?

    They evangelize good news of Christ.

    The Gospel is Good News for sinners saved from death and the judgement of God. But the NEWS of Jesus Christ is NOT a topic shared by the world set against God.

    Is the Lord Jesus Christ the HEADLINE of media?

    Hardly.

    What is it that Republicans do? They evangelize the good news of the republic (regardless of who they claim as their god).

    And what is it that Democrats do? They evangelize the good news of democracy (regardless of what universal religion of the masses they claim).

    Who is calling out these evangelical christians so visible in the media?

    The opposition – opponents both of each other and against Jesus Christ.

    So what is the business of media (including, of course, SOCIAL MEDIA)?

    NEWS that sells.

    Viral News that spreads through the unconsciousness of addicted consumers of culture.

    NEWS creates COVID

    – a Culture Of Viral Influential Destruction

    of its consumed viewers, readers, listeners and virtual audience.

    Whenever the world believes they can once again crucify the Lord God on their cross,

    the NEWS maligns evangelical christians as human examples

    demonstrating how God cannot save their world or their souls.


    From Tents to Stadiums & Community to MEGA-Church

    The Apostles of the first century Church appointed other men like Philip to serve their growing church and preach the Gospel. These men and women were evangelical Christians in the fullest sense, proclaiming Gospel Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord to all the world — men, women and children of every culture and nation.

    Their churches (some to which we have letters from the Apostles) were mostly house churches or gatherings of the saints in certain public places.

    Evangelism was by word of mouth and by their own example of Christ-like uniqueness from the cultures in which they lived.

    Peter, John, Paul, Philip, Barnabas, Luke and many others represent Christ as evangels of their first century lives. They traveled between communities, wrote letters, sent money and pastoral advice and stayed with these believers for a time when the Spirit led them to build up the Church.

    The Tabernacle was central to the Hebrew community as they traveled to the Promised Land

    Paul made tents for travelers, but by the days of the explorers of later centuries, larger tents became meeting places – a public square in the middle of nowhere as in the days of the Tabernacle of Moses.

    Evangelical Christians have gone into all the world in every century between the first and twenty-first an proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

    a Glance at Evangelicalism Divided

    evangelical christians worshiping in church

    The impression of Christ by the evangelical of the twentieth century became tainted by evangelicals themselves, a trend which has multiplied into further contention in our cultural churches of the twenty-first century.

    We will continue our look at Evangelical Christian Churches NEXT TIME in a brief overview of 1950-2000 by Iain Murray.

    Stay tuned…


  • Be saved from this perverse generation!

    Be saved from this perverse generation!

    And the people stood by, watching. And even the rulers were sneering [G1592] at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.”

    Gospel of Luke 23:35 NASB20 – The Perverse witness of Jesus suffering on a Cross sacrificed for the sins of the world

    Do perverse leaders not manipulate the crowds of every generation?

    Not everyone had ears to hear Peter on Pentecost, nor were all touched by the Holy Spirit.

    Public trials and crucifixions of the first century included a mocking of criminals, a public perversion of the LORD’s mercy for the Jews, theatre for the mobs at the expense of the marginalized. (Certainly media for the multitudes is no different today.)

    Some Jews coming to Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost spoke of Peter with similarly sneering questions like those they had formerly asked Jesus or mocked Him at the Cross.

    WHY is this Galilean preaching about that supposed King Jesus the Nazarene we crucified on a cross just two months ago?

    Luke has already told us about the motives of these men in his Gospel about Jesus, the Christ.

    Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were ridiculing G1592 Him. And He said to them,

    “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of people, but God knows your hearts; because that which is highly esteemed among people is detestable in the sight of God.”

    Luke 16:14-15 NASB20 – following Jesus’ parable about ‘The Unrighteous Manager’ –

    Peter would have previously witnessed opposition by these religious men to teaching of their promised Messiah Jesus. Some of these same religious men present this Pentecost had won political followers by their perverse sense of justice at the Cross of Jesus.

    Peter Preaches to Jerusalem’s Crowds

    ACTS of the Apostles 2:

    ¿Cómo, pues, les oímos nosotros hablar cada uno en nuestra lengua en la que hemos nacido?

    Hechos 2 :: Reina-Valera 1960 (RVR60)
    ACTS 2:
    1550 Stephanus New Testament; Arabic Bible: Easy-to-Read Version حُلُولُ الرُّوحِ القُدُس; Revised Chinese Union Version (Simplified Script) Shen Edition; Hindi Bible: Easy-to-Read Version

    “How is it that each of us can hear them in our own native language?

    Acts of the Apostles 2:8 CSB

    but others were mocking..

    ΠΡΑΞΕΙΣ ΤΩΝ ΑΠΟΣΤΟΛΩΝ 2
    SBL Greek New Testament
    Biblia Sacra Vulgata
    King James Version
    מעשי השליחים Habrit Hakhadasha/Haderekh
    ACTS 2:13
    
    ἕτεροι δὲ διαχλευάζοντες ἔλεγον ὅτι γλεύκους μεμεστωμένοι εἰσίν
    alii autem inridentes dicebant quia musto pleni sunt isti
    Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.

    13 אולם בקרב הקהל היו גם כאלה שלעגו: “הם סתם שיכורים!”

    WAIT! Did you get that?

    • “Look, aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? – Acts 2:7b CSB
    • “How is it that each of us can hear them in our own native language? – Acts 2:8 CSB
    • They were all astounded and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean? ” – Acts 2:12 CSB
    • But some sneered and said, “They’re drunk on new wine.” – Acts 2:13 CSB

    SOME got it AND some did NOT.

    Those with ears to hear were ‘pierced to the heart’ [v.37] AND some stiff-necked leaders simply mocked the Apostles [v.13] as they had the Lord, Christ Jesus.

    A Perverse Generation Misses the Point

    Those who turn their backs on the Spirit sneer at God’s punishment for sin.

    Peter had preached of David:

    .. he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay.

    Acts 2:31 NASB20

    Yet the scoffers would neither see the signs, hear the Spirit nor listen to the truth of Scripture. These always make excuses for their own perversity against the righteousness of the Lord.

    Peter said to them, “Repent..

    Many did, yet those who sneer at God refuse to be convicted by abandonment to Hell and Death.

    And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on urging them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!”

    Appeal of the Apostle Peter to those who will repent – Acts of the Apostles 2:20

    σκολιός –

    Strong’s Definitions σκολιός skoliós, skol-ee-os’; from the base of G4628; warped, i.e. winding; figuratively, perverse:—crooked, froward, untoward [that is: Improper; unseemly; Unfavorable or adverse; Froward; perverse {source: ibid}]

    Can you think of any of THIS GENERATION who are like THAT?

    See the description [above] of a generation against whom the Peter warned when the Apostle exhorted those of his first century listeners to REPENT and

    “Save yourselves from this untoward generation.

    Acts of the Apostles 2:40b KJV

    How would YOU respond to Peter’s sermon?

    ΠΡΑΞΕΙΣ ΤΩΝ ΑΠΟΣΤΟΛΩΝ 2 [ACTS 2:]

    I WILL POUR OUT MY SPIRIT UPON ALL FLESH ACTS 2:17 picture of flames

    ‘AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ God says, ‘THAT I WILL POUR OUT MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND..’

    And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

    ACTS of the Apostles 2:21 NASB

    ‘This Man Jesus..’

    .. this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.

    ACTS 2:24-25 – The Apostle Peter preaching of Jesus’ death in the flesh and resurrection of His body!

    Therefore, since He has been exalted..

    .. He has poured out this which you both see and hear.

    ARE YOU ONE OF THOSE WHO WOULD NOW ASK THE APOSTLES WHAT TO DO?

    Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”

    ACTS of the Apostles 2:38-39 NASB

    Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

    ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 2:40 New Living Translation

    ARE YOU ONE WITH EARS TO LISTEN TO PETER’S CONTINUED PLEA?

    For surely we are a generation nearer THE END of these last days.

    AGAIN, when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what are we to do?” And they did what Peter and the Apostles taught them to do.

    TO A GENERATION NEARER THE END OF THESE LAST DAYS?

    So then, those who had received his word were baptized;

    and that day there were added about three thousand souls.

    They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

    ACTS of the Apostles 2:41-42 NASB
    collage of worldly leaders - ACTS 2:40 "Be saved from this perverse generation.

    Do YOU ‘devote’ your ‘self’ to ‘the Apostles teaching‘ OR to hours lost to sin in a perverse 21st century generation of these ‘last days?’

    To be continued...