Burn the Bible!

One man and his church are planning on burning the Koran in remembrance of 9/11. The day in which a group of Moslems attacked the Twin Towers and the Pentagon killing more than 3000 Americans.

In spite of this book burning being an action by an individual protected under the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, his actions are being condemned by:

The President of the United States

The Attorney General of the United States

The Secretary of State of the United States

The General in command of American troops in Afghanistan

Their condemnation comes under the rubric of this being a nation of religious liberty.

Yet a mere 2 years ago the United States Government, Department of Defense oversaw the destruction of Bibles.

May 22, 2009

(CNN) -- Military personnel threw away, and ultimately burned, confiscated Bibles that were printed in the two most common Afghan languages amid concern they would be used to try to convert Afghans, a Defense Department spokesman said Tuesday.

On the one hand we have an individual expressing his Bill of Rights guaranteed activity to burn a book. On the other you have government representatives condemning the destruction of a "holy" book, while at the same time officially destroying another "holy" book.

If the US government had destroyed a box of Korans as they had the Bibles-What do you think the reaction throughout all of the Moslem world would have been?

One book responsible for the rise of all modern society, civilization, and technology of the Western world. The other book responsible for the imprisonment of millions in a "civilization" barely more advanced than the stone age. A civilization which calls for the stoning of women who have been raped -by their own family. And the genital mutilation of small girls to insure they never are able to experience sexual "pleasure."

On one hand is a book promoting world peace and tolerance. On the other a book promoting intolerance and world conquest by the sword to enforce submission to its mandates.

On one hand a book gifted by God to bring peace and reconciliation with Him. On the other hand what is most likely the most evil book ever conceived by Satan.

In all of this why am I not surprised at the continued antipathy toward the Bible and Christianity by Democrats, socialists and liberals in the United States? (yes, I do know those three terms are functionally synonymous)

What if Satan Ruled?

What would things look like if Satan actually took over a city? The first frames in our imaginative slide show probably depict mayhem on a massive scale: Widespread violence, deviant sexualities, pornography in every vending machine, churches closed down and worshipers dragged off to City Hall. Over a half-century ago, Donald Grey Barnhouse, pastor of Philadelphia's Tenth Presbyterian Church, gave his CBS radio audience a different picture of what it would look like if Satan took control of a town in America. He said that all of the bars and pool halls would be closed, pornography banished, pristine streets and sidewalks would be occupied by tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other. There would be no swearing. The kids would answer "Yes, sir," "No, ma'am," and the churches would be full on Sunday ... where Christ is not preached.
quoted from Michael Horton,"Christless Christianity: Getting in Christ's Way " in Modern Reformation.

So if the churches are full and the name of Christ can't be mentioned, what could they possibly be teaching?

Let's try to come up with some ideas:

• Your Best Life Now
• Purpose Driven Life
• Possibility Thinking
• 12 Step Recovery

Then there are the spiritual giants:

• Prayer
• Spiritual Formation
• Spiritual Disciplines
• Meditation and Silence
• Chicken Soup for the Soul
• Holistic wellness
  

O.K. I admit, I couldn't really come up with any ideas on how there could possibly be a church without preaching Christ, and Him crucified. So I just looked around at all the popular megachurches today.

And that, my brothers and sisters in Christ, makes me very sad indeed.

maranatha