4TH of July
Independence Day. Independence from who? Presently we need to seek freedom from oppression and tyranny just as we did in "1776". Although the enemy is different. At that time, we were under the flag of Great Britain, but after we separated from them officially, and they failed to drag us back, we operated on the world's stage independently. Eventually, we reconnected with England as equals, partners, and allies. We still don't always see things in the same light, but instead of killing each other, we negotiate.
The enemy of today is much more insidious, crafty, relentless, etc. Satan, is angry, and in his desire to be "god", he perverts everything he touches. We are facing a crisis of conscience regarding our society and how we view the world and each other. This day is about Liberty. Liberation from oppression, tyranny, and perversion of society like we see today.
The LGBTQIA+ agenda is growing and that's a major problem. The pulpit is not helping. Especially when the church supports homosexuality in any form. Christians DO NOT HATE GAY's, we despise the sin, not the person. We pray for their souls to be reconciled to God in a loving and forgiving relationship, and that they are able to find peace through Christ Jesus.
The LGBT lifestyle is a choice. However, that choice may have been forced upon someone in the form of rape or grooming. In other words, that person chose homosexuality, or whatever, because they were taught that it was okay. God does NOT condone these practices. Read the account of Lot and Sodom & Gomorrah,
Genesis 19 NKJV
19 Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground.
2 And he said, “Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.” And they said, “No, but we will spend the night in the open square.”
3 But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
4 Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house.
5 And they called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally.”
6 So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind him,
7 and said, “Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly!
8 See now, I have two daughters who have not known a man; please, let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them as you wish; only do nothing to these men, since this is the reason they have come under the shadow of my roof.”
9 And they said, “Stand back!” Then they said, “This one came in to [a]stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge; now we will deal worse with you than with them.” So they pressed hard against the man Lot and came near to break down the door.
10 But the men reached out their hands and pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.
11 And they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great so that they became weary trying to find the door.
Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed
12 Then the men said to Lot, “Have you anyone else here? Son-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in the city—take them out of this place!
13 For we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before the face of the Lord, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.”
14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, “Get up, get out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city!” But to his sons-in-law, he seemed to be joking.
15 When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, “Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.”
16 And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.
17 So it came to pass when they had brought them outside, that [b]he said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be [c]destroyed.”
18 Then Lot said to them, “Please, no, my lords!
19 Indeed now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy which you have shown me by saving my life, but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I die.
20 See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one; please let me escape there (is it, not a little one?) and my soul shall live.”
21 And he said to him, “See, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken.
22 Hurry, escape there. For I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the city was called [d]Zoar.
23 The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zoar.
24 Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the Lord out of the heavens.
25 So He [e]overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
26 But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
27 And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord.
28 Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace.
29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.
God's righteousness in the face of Sin
God is HOLY, and cannot abide SIN. We all commit sins, normally several times a day. It's hard not to, especially lust, for men. The provocative way people, not just women, dress is a walking temptation. There is more skin showing on a city street than on some beaches. And of course, there is the beach wear. If you want an "All over tan" go to a tanning salon. The swimsuit today for many women is not much more than a string and hides literally nothing. If I had ever caught my daughters wearing anything like that, I would have covered them and dragged them off the beach and out of public view. Would that have been the correct and prudent response? I don't know, but that would have been in the moment. The key is that they were not committing sin at the moment, but those that would have been around them would have been. The Bible addresses that too.
Jesus Warns of Offenses
“But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea.
Ladies and Gentlemen: dress the way you want to be addressed. If you dress provocatively you may not appreciate the way someone speaks to you or refers to you. And your actions may be the source of someone else's sin, to the point of their being lost eternally.
I ask everyone to pray for their eyes to be opened to their own actions and how they affect other people around them.
God Bless you all. If you have any questions, contact me.
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