Shoulder To Shoulder #12667-- 11/29/21 ----The Folly of Forgetting God -- Demise of a People: Part 10 -- Sacrificing To Molech (Part H)"
Posted by: shoulders <shoulders@...>
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER is a weekly letter of encouragement Bob has written since 1997, covering many topics
selected to motivate people to be strong students of the Word and courageous witnesses of Jesus Christ.
It is a personal letter of encouragement to you, written solely to help "lift up hands that hang down".
"The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil,
but by those who watch them without doing anything." -- Albert Einstein
“There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day,
which many have, and think they have -- a cheap Christianity
which offends nobody, and requires no sacrifice, which
costs nothing, -- and is worth nothing.” – J. C. Ryle
"Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica,
for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the
Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so." -- Dr. Luke (Acts 17:11)
Shoulder To Shoulder #12667-- 11/29/21
Title: "The Folly of Forgetting God -- Demise of a People: Part 10 -- Sacrificing To Molech (Part H)"
My Dear Friend and Co-Laborer With Christ:
Greetings to you again on a lovely day in the desert Southwest. It's my prayer that you are truly enjoying the goodness and grace of God in measures to great to absorb. Jo Ann and I are doing fine, and are making great progress in finishing up all the little projects on the "new" house, and we are nearing completing them all, making it possible for us to finish the interior decorating and unpacking boxes still remaining. In a week or two, it should be ready for full occupancy, although we will remain primarily in the Park Model in the RV resort where we minister during winter months.
Since it's already late in the evening, I'll forego any further small talk and get right to the subject.
It is not coincidental that I have been writing on the topic of abortion the past seven letters, and now the eighth today. That has been by direct intent. In light of the fact for the first time in forty-eight years, the gross injustice of Roe v. Wade is being seriously challenged in the Supreme Court. Regardless of the outcome, God is once again making His point -- mankind was created by God and for God.
One of the lies that pro-abortion people continue to make is that all abortions will be illegal if Roe v. Wade is overturned. That is simply not true. In essence what an overturn would do is nullify national laws on abortion and turn the issue back to the states where it originally belonged. Each state would be again responsible to determine what kind of laws it decides to pass in order to protect life in the womb. However, while it will not outlaw all abortions, it will dramatically reduce the number performed. And that is very good.
Here is a concise article that describes the issue at hand. Go to https://www.whyprolife.com/what-will-happen-if-roe-v-wade-is-overturned/.
THIS 'N' THAT:
+ Tragedy of the Commons: Contrary to what some have espoused, neither the Church nor the United States practiced "communal" or "commons" economics -- at least not for long. True, the early Christians had a generous disposition of taking care of each other, but there is no evidence that they ever uniformly sold their properties and possessions and put them into congregational "pools" and distributed the assets equally among members. Study the word itself and the setting. It's used only twice in the New Testament regarding assets, both in Acts (2:44 & 4:32). As to America's early beginnings, John Stossel wrote this insightful piece about "The Tragedy of the Commons" in which he notes the colonists failed effort at "equal sharing" and how they quickly rejected the model we now call Socialism. John is one of my favorite secular writers, and he skillfully, quickly, and clearly paints the picture of how we are moving that direction -- and how dangerous and destructive it will be. Go to https://rightandfree.com/news/2021/11/24/thank-private-property?utm_campaign=BAS&utm_source=BAS-20211130&utm_medium=email.
QUOTES FOR THE WEEK:
> "America’s unthinking submission to the lies and twisted arguments of the so-called pro-choice movement will move us inexorably toward social genocide of a magnitude eclipsing that of Hitler, Stalin, Somalia, the Serb-Croate conflict, or any other massacre openly denounced in our media." -- Hank Hanegraaff (Practical Apologetics: Annihilating Abortion Arguments, 5/30/09)
> "From a strictly scientific point of view, there is no doubt that the development of an individual human life begins at conception. Consequently, it is vital that the reader understand that she did not come from a zygote, she once was a zygote; she did not come from an embryo, she once was an embryo; she did not come from a fetus, she once was a fetus; she did not come from an adolescent, she once was an adolescent.” -- Dr. Francis J. Beckwith (Politically Correct Death: Answering Arguments for Abortion Rights, Baker, 1993).
> “It is scientifically correct to say that an individual human life begins at conception, when egg and sperm join to form the zygote, and this developing human always is a member of our species in all stages of its life.” -- Dr. Micheline Matthew-Roth (principal research associate in the Department of Medicine at Harvard Medical School)
> "The movement’s own label — “pro-choice” — is a twisted deception, covering up for a social genocide where the 'right' to choose to kill one’s preborn baby reigns supreme over that baby’s human rights; over the rights of the mother to receive accurate information about fetal development and the dangerous consequences to herself from abortion; over the rights of the parents of a pregnant minor; over the rights of the preborn’s father; and over the rights of a human society to protect all its members — no matter what their social status, economic independence, physical limitations, or acceptance by their families. Those who continue to fight legislation restricting abortion are not 'pro-choice,' they are 'pro-abortion,' or more accurately, 'pro-murder.' -- Hank Hanegraaff (Practical Apologetics: Annihilating Abortion Arguments, 5/30/09)
> "It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish." -- Mother Teresa
> "“For just as it is impossible for anyone to be any more or less human at any stage of his own existence, so it is impossible for him to be either more or less human than any other human being. Thus, in essentials the unborn child is the same as you and I, differing from us only in such non-essentials as size and ability, even as you and I differ from each other without lessening the humanity of either. So it is in recognition of their common and invisible humanity that we say all men are equal, subordinating to that equality all the differences in degree between one person and another. And it is because of their common humanity, with its attendant dignity and uniqueness, that we say men may not be used as a means to an end, may not be enslaved or otherwise exploited, may not be killed for the sake of expediency. In the light of this understanding of equality, it is impossible to justify the abortion movement, which would make the differences of the unborn child the basis for denying him the equal protection of the law. If lack of maturity makes him expendable, in principle there is nothing to prevent our declaring that other deficiencies make other persons expendable.” -- Paul Marx (The Death Peddlers War on the Unborn)
> "The right to life is a moral law, an inalienable right that the government is to protect. Our Constitution recognizes that right. READ it." -- Edward Dolan (The Herald Times, 11/21/21)
WHERE DOES LIFE ORIGINATE:
I know that most people like to simply "Cut to the Chase", but before we can deal reliably with the topic of abortion, the sanctity of life, and the fact that life is the first of and the foundation to all our unalienable rights assured us by our Constitution, we of necessity need to address the question as to the origin of life itself. We need to know what -- or Who -- started it all. You and I know the answer, of course, but some readers may be uncertain or skeptical and need the opportunity to consider the facts.
As a matter of fact, in order to deal with innumerable topics -- such as war, disease, execution, euthanasia, etc. -- one must be honest enough to tackle life's fundamental question, "where did it come from in the first place?" Exactly where did life originate? I think the "Where?" is far more important than even the "When?". You know that I am obviously no scientist -- my worst grades in high school and college were almost always in the science and math classes, so I am not smart enough to tackle that question in light of what others have discovered.
Several years ago there was an enormous amount of "hoopla" over the claim by some scientists that they were "on the verge" of creating life, or had already made the breakthrough. In fact, the cover story of the June 2010 edition of Scientific American contained an article entitled "12 Events That Will Change Everything." Along with claims of an asteroid hitting earth, a worldwide pandemic, and human cloning, one of the twelve "proposed" breakthroughs was the creation of synthetic life. The article said that such a creation was, "almost certain."
When the scientific breakthrough made the headlines, Dr. Albert Mohler, President of Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville, KY, since 1983, wrote an article about it. His comments were significant enough then to include them now, eleven years later. Addressing the achievement by Dr. Craig Venter and his associates, Mohler wrote, . .
"In truth, what Venter and his team accomplished was the synthesizing of the largest-ever piece of DNA. They did not create an organism from the ground up, but used the existing cell of another bacterium. The synthesized DNA then took over the cell and began replicating itself. That is a remarkable feat of technology, but it is not the creation of an entirely synthetic organism.
"Venter, never one to underplay his achievements, described the transformed cell as 'the first self-replicating species we've had on the planet whose parent is a computer.' He added, 'This is a philosophical advance as much as a technical advance.' But what kind of 'philosophical advance'?
"Writing at The Guardian [London], Andrew Brown described 'his moment of complete victory for materialism,' noting that atheists would point to the announcement as evidence that there is no need for a divine Creator.
"David Baltimore, another influential scientist, described Venter's achievement as 'a technological tour de force,' but he rejected the claim that Venter had created life. 'He has not created life, only mimicked it,' he told The New York Times.
"On the other hand, University of Pennsylvania bioethicist Arthur Caplan described the achievement of Venter's team as 'one of the most important scientific achievements in the history of mankind.' He told The Financial Times: 'Venter's achievement would seem to extinguish the argument that life requires a special force or power to exist.'
"A bit of perspective is needed here. In the first place, this news is hardly a 'moment of complete victory for materialism.' That is, not unless you are going to define Craig Venter and his team of human colleagues as merely material objects. But, if you are ready to reduce humanity -- intelligence, emotions, and all -- to mere materialism, you were surely not waiting for this news to confirm your position. In truth, this was a technological and intellectual achievement made by human beings, not by purely material objects.
"Second, this was not the creation of a life form ex nihilo, nor even from entirely non-organic materials. These researchers used an existing cell and the catalytic agent of yeast in conducting their experiment. Thus, this hardly extinguishes the argument 'that life requires a special force or power to exist'."
President Mohler's commentary remind us again that man cannot create life, but only imitate it. Only life can create life. Everything else is a copycat effort -- perhaps even a caricature of the real thing.
Since then, more articles have been written, more claims have been made, and more advancing research has been carried. But, I won't confuse -- or bore -- you with the details, but it illustrates how from time immemorial it seems that mankind has tried to delete the Source of life and try to create life without Him. Whether it is the "creation" of synthetic life or the claim that "goo grew up to be you", man simply cannot bring himself to admit the obvious.
However, it pretty much comes down to the fact that the issue remains highly debatable -- except, as I believe, those of us with our Judeo-Christian roots. The best others can do, then, is narrow their options, look at the alternatives, and consider the most logical explanation. Some explanations are so scientific and complex -- and unbelievable -- that they will make your head spin. In essence, the varied explanations can be divided into two basic categories -- 1. evolution or 2. creation.
Life either simply "evolved" from nothing into a more complex something , and then into life, OR life has a creator -- something or someone who originated it to begin with.
So, let's look at the two alternatives -- Evolution or Creation.
1. Evolution: ---- The basic premise of Darwinian evolution is that all life evolved slowly over a period of millions and perhaps billions of years, starting initially with the formation of the basic chemical building blocks of life -- that is things like amino acids, sugars, etc.. Then over a period of many, many years, these basic molecules merged to build more complex molecules and then, after many, many more years, the most basic life forms came into existence as organisms. (Immediately I find myself asking, "Then who made the amino acids, sugars, and the rest? Where did They come from?")
These basic organisms then also changed by natural selection, acting on chance mutations, into all the life forms on earth today (including human beings). Such a prolonged process would obviously require that every single step, from simple to more complex, would involved changes that would enhance the survivability of the organism itself. In other words, if such a working system were to be changed in some way, the change itself must be to the organism's advantage in a way that the organism not only survives, but also becomes more complex while also becoming stronger and more efficient.
This process from simple to complex and from vulnerable to survivable would then be passed on to future generations of organisms. As a result, organisms would progressively become more complex and life would eventually evolve.
Now, if you take the first position -- that of an evolutionary process -- then you have to find out "what" evolved, and more importantly, "how" that "what" actually evolved. If something has evolved, then from what did that "something" evolve? For something to "evolve", there has to be something that existed before it "evolved". Science has pretty much concluded -- erroneously, I might add -- that the most basic form of life is simple organic molecules. Berkley University website has an article entitled, "From Soup to Cells -- The Origin of Life" in which they use several thousand words to try to explain life's origin.
The article begins, . . .
"Evolution encompasses a wide range of phenomena: from the emergence of major lineages, to mass extinctions, to the evolution of antibiotic resistant bacteria in hospitals today. However, within the field of evolutionary biology, the origin of life is of special interest because it addresses the fundamental question of where we (and all living things) came from."
Interestingly, the article uses three words that give them an "out" just in case they're wrong -- "hypotheses" and "evidence suggests". At least they are honest. As far as I can tell, every single principle of natural evolution -- even though they are often taught in schools and covered in the secular media as fact -- remain nothing more than theory, hypothesis, idea, or opinion. Not one single principle of evolution has been scientifically proven to be factually true -- no matter what your teacher or professor declares.
The basic idea of Evolution is that all of life originated when simple molecules, such as a nucleotide (composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and phosphorus atoms), which are the building blocks of life, must have been involved in its origin. The Berkley article described it like this:
"Experiments suggest that organic molecules could have been synthesized in the atmosphere of early Earth and rained down into the oceans. RNA and DNA molecules — the genetic material for all life — are just long chains of simple nucleotides.
In this article, the procedural steps necessary to produce life are listed, with a brief explanation of each step, beginning with this statement:
"all this complexity did not leap fully-formed from the primordial soup. Instead life almost certainly originated in a series of small steps, each building upon the complexity that evolved previously."
For the sake of time and space, the steps simply are . . .
1) Simple organic molecules were formed.
2) Replicating molecules evolved and began to undergo natural selection.
3) Replicating molecules became enclosed within a cell membrane.
4) Some cells began to evolve modern metabolic processes and out-competed those with older forms of metabolism.
5) Multicellularity evolved.
I won't bore you -- or confuse you (and me) -- with more explanations. However, if that theory happens to be true, I DO have some questions -- based on that statement:
1) If the molecules were synthesized in the atmosphere, then where did the atmosphere come from?
2) If the molecules rained down on early Earth, where did early Earth come from?
3) If the molecules rained down into the oceans on early Earth, where did the oceans come from?
4) If the molecules are made up of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus atoms, where did each of those atoms come from?
5) Since the nucleotides are made up of these molecules that consist
of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus atoms, how did they develop into long chains and then create life? And, where did they come from in the first place?There is, however, another premise that Dr. Michael J. Behe, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, takes in his book, Darwin's Black Box: The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution, Behe begins with the premise -- a highly reliable one, I might add -- that traditional evolutionary theory does not and cannot adequately explain the complexity of basic biochemical systems.
That entire area of expertise and knowledge is nowhere to be found on my radar screen but, simply put, Dr Behe attempts in his book to establish that the basic biochemical systems necessary to establish and sustain life are not the result of random events but are rather the result of intelligent design. He proposes that there is a principle called "irreducible complexity" that makes it scientifically -- chemically -- impossible for things to "evolve" into higher forms.
In layman's terms, "Irreducible Complexity" means that there are certain complex factors that cannot be simplified or reduced to simpler forms because they are too complex to do so, and if they Were to be reduced, they would cease to function. Behe shows that any system that is irreducibly complex recognizes that there are certain precise components that work jointly together to perform the basic function of that particular system. Therefore, if any part of that system were to be absent or removed, the system would not be able to function and it would, therefore, Cease to function, let alone become more complex and evolve into some "higher order".
To illustrate (and this is not a particularly good example), no single part of a car can create another part, and if any one part of the car is missing, the car will not operate. If the engine is missing or breaks down, the rest of the car won't take you anywhere. If the transmission is missing, the power of the engine cannot go to the drive shaft that generations motion to the wheels. If the drive shaft is missing, the wheels won't turn, and if the wheels don't turn, . . . You get the picture. It's an "all or none" situation. You may have a chassis, but it is just a chassis. If you have a transmission, it is simply a transmission. It will go nowhere. If a car is missing just one of those items, it's not a car -- it's just something to push . . or use as an extra sleeping room when unwanted friends or relatives drop by.
Therefore, in the matter of biochemical activity that evolution requires in order for Darwin's theory to work, (and even Darwin in his own writings acknowledged that he wasn't certain it could actually happen -- it was simply a "theory") any step to simplify an irreducibly complex system would result in a non-functional system. So, if the theory of evolution alleges that all systems evolved by gradual addition to previously functioning systems, and the process eventually evolves into life, then how does one explain a complex system that would not perform its basic function if it were missing even a single component? That's called "irreducible complexity."
In his book, Dr. Behe is articulate in convincing even ordinary people like you and me that this type of gradual change proposed by evolutionists just will not work at the most essential biochemical level -- let alone the higher levels of organism replication -- simply because there are certain biochemical complexities that, chemically, just cannot be reduced down to simpler forms or equations. As a result, the idea of it all starting with a cluster of
carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus atoms is not scientifically tenable.You see, -- and I'm not ridiculing science in any way -- when you talk about life and its origin, you cannot attribute it to having originated in some swampy goo on some distant rock rotating around an unexplained sun in an unexplained orbit that, if not exactly in the place it is in, would either freeze you to death or burn you to a crisp if only one degree farther from or closer to the sun.
To be totally honest, I think it takes more faith to believe in the theories of evolution than it does to believe that there was a creator -- a Divine "more-than-human, greater-than-human" -- who was the One who is the origin of life. So, let's now consider the possibility of . . .
2. A Creator: ---- While scientists in many fields of expertise have done experiments trying to produce or create life, every single attempt has ended in failure. The best they have done has been to take existing life and try to imitate it -- or in the case of Dolly, the clones sheep.
On July 5, 1996, Dolly became the first mammal to have ever been successfully cloned from an adult cell. She was born at the Roslin Institute in Scotland. Its Original code-name was merely “6LL3”. (I didn't know this until today that the cloned lamb was actually named after singer and actress Dolly Parton because the animal was cloned from a mammary cell.) Cells had been taken from the udder of a six-year-old ewe and cultured in a lab using microscopic needles. It was a method first used in human fertility treatments in the 1970s. After producing a number of normal eggs, scientists implanted them into surrogate ewes; 148 days later one of them gave birth to Dolly.
So, then -- did the scientists at Roslin Institute create life? Absolutely NOT! Life already existed in that adult cell taken from a ewe's udder, transferred it to a petri dish, and then cultured it with more life that already existed, and duplicated the life that was already present in both. Not one single person in all of human history has ever created life.
Life can be derived ONLY from life already existing. This is proven even in nature. Take any vegetable or fruit of your choosing, plant a seed from it, and you will get a harvest from that seed -- and the harvest will be the same as the seed. Why? Because within the seed there were two fundamental ingredients -- the nature of the fruit or vegetable, . . . AND life. Now, if that seed happens to be dead when you plant it, nothing will happen. Why? Because there was no life in the seed.
I know this from personal experience when more than once I retained seeds from "bean trees" and Redbud trees, bulbs from Iris's, and acorns from Oak trees, and promptly forgot them. Years later I would find them, plant them, and waste my time doing so. The inner life within them had died. Dead seeds never produce live plants. Death can never produce life.
So, for a person to think that a fetus in the womb is nothing more than a blob of tissue is absurd. That fetus has life. In fact, as we have already seen and has been scientifically proven many times over, that life was alive from the moment of conception. Within both the egg of the woman and the sperm of the man, life was dwelling within -- it was the life of the woman and the life of the man. When the egg and the sperm combine, a fresh and new life is immediately created. Only life can produce life.
The mystery of life is life itself. How does it happen? Where does it come from? What is its value? What would our world look like if there was no such thing as life? ---- simply a barren chunk of rock . . . just like other planets.
That, then, brings us to a troubling question -- why would any human being, then, choose to kill a human life still in the womb or just after having left the womb simply because it was economically difficult to raise it, inconvenient to one's vocation, the result of a tragic sexual assault, or a hindrance to one's preferred lifestyle?
Only a mind that is confused and uninformed, a heart that is hard, or a conscience that is seared would ever do such a thing.
In that the evidence is clear that life is a created thing created by a creator, and that such a creator can only be THE Creator, God Himself, then it behooves us to consider what God has to say about life. So, let's begin with . . .
THE PREMISE -- THE PRESUPPOSITION:
I remember hearing someone approach an agnostic regarding the origin of the world by suggesting they first go back to some "presuppositions" -- some fundamental principles. They are the foundations upon which any science or belief system must rest. You could call a presupposition a Premise.
A premise can be defined as "a statement or idea that is accepted as being true and that is used as the basis of an argument" -- Merriam-Webster. Wikipedia defines it as "an assumption that something is true." You could say it is a "foregone conclusion based on solid evidence."
In similar terms, a presupposition is defined as being"an implicit assumption about the world or background belief relating to an utterance whose truth is taken for granted in discourse." -- Wikipedia
Another word often used is assumption. It is defined as "taking something for granted as being true". It is important to recognize that an assumption may not necessarily be worthy of our support because it is too easy to assume something, and then find out it isn't true -- such as the existence of a real Easter bunny, or that the earth is flat, or that the moon is made of green cheese -- or the theory of evolution.
So, if you are going to understand the issue of abortion, for example, you must base it on a premise or a presupposition, and NOT on a mere assumption. Not even a hypothesis is trustworthy because it is merely a theory that is not yet fully proven to be true.
Now, science is built on such certain presuppositions and premises, and certainly not on theories, hypotheses, or assumptions. Science is what does the homework on theories, hypotheses, and assumptions, testing them to see if they can or will ever become factual premises or presuppositions -- foregone conclusions.
We have the benefit of following after Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Einstein, and thousands of others before us who did all the dirty work of testing out such theories, hypotheses, and assumptions in those many areas of study. For you and me, as Christians, we also have an even more certain resource, and that is the Word of God, the Bible. It is far more sure than all other sources and, in fact, in every situation it has been science that attested to the accuracy of the Bible, and NOT the Bible having proven science. That in itself is an extraordinary topic to research. The evidence is truly mind-boggling. I have written often on the matter in the past.
So, here are some clearly recognized presuppositions that cannot be avoided, nor can they be denied or explained away. They MUST always be the foundation upon which we build our belief, or the starting point from which we launch an investigation. They are:
1. Life begins at conception when the egg and the sperm merge. Ancient writers knew that, though not understanding the scientific principles behind it. Many cultures celebrate birthdays based on the day of conception, and not on the day of delivery. This also speaks clearly to this fact that medical science has since proven beyond any doubt. Even our founding fathers understood this. For example, Dr. Benjamin Rush, a medical doctor, a signer of Declaration of Independence, and the first Surgeon General of the United States. He stated, . . .
". . . life’s first motion is produced by the stimulus of the male seed upon the female ovum ... No sooner is the female ovum thus set in motion, and the foetus formed, than its capacity of life is supported.”
I will address this a bit later, but at least read what David wrote in describing his awareness of his own origin.
> King David singing to God (Ps 139:13-16) -- "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."
Over the past several weeks I have repeatedly listed quotes by scholars, medical professionals, scientists, and theologians stating that life begins at conception, so I won't belabor the point here again. It is more than a presupposition -- it is a fact.
2. Life comes from God. For centuries mankind has tried to answer the question as to the origin of life. They have debated where humans came from, but they've never been able to answer the question, "Where does life come from?". You've heard the phrase, "Life is a mystery." It's true. It speaks to the question of life's origin. You and I, of course, know the answer. It comes from God. Here are just a few of innumerable scriptures making that fact clear.
> (Gen 2:7) -- "Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being."
> (Job 33:4) -- “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life."
> (Acts 17:25) -- ". . nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;"
> (I Tim 6:13) -- "I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, . . ."
3. Abortion kills people -- innocent people -- and damages troubled people. It kills lives. In that personhood is identified while still in the womb, then that person, no matter how tiny it may be, is a "people" -- a real person. When an abortion is performed, an actual person is killed. It's not just a "glob" of tissue. If this is not true, then why do parents name their babies before they are born? Why do they often read to them and sing to them while still in the womb.
Most importantly, why would God, then, speak specifically of various Bible characters -- real, historical, actual people -- about how He saw them, knew them, formed them, had a plan for them, and even named them before they were born?
> God to the Israelites (Isa 44:21, 24) -- “Remember these things, O Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant, O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me. . . . This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, the Maker of all things, who stretches out the heavens, who spreads out the earth by myself, , , ,"
> God to the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 1:5) -- “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
> The Psalmist to us (Ps 100:3) -- }Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture."
> Isaiah speaking to Israel (Isa 49:1) -- "Listen to Me, O islands, and pay attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called Me from the womb; From the body of My mother He named Me."
(Some believe this is also a statement about the coming of Christ into the world, and there is some merit to that argument.)
Not only does abortion kill physically, but also emotionally, mentally, and relationally. Otherwise, why do so many girls and women -- and many fathers as well -- deal with emotional and mental distress following abortions? Why do they so frequently feel guilty? Why do the enter into depression -- sometimes deep depression -- after an abortion? Why are they so frequently burdened down with feelings of guilt -- and even shame?
The answer is simple -- Abortion kills real human beings -- and worse yet, even before they have any chance at all.
Thus, from these three presuppositions or assumptions -- 1) life begins at conceptions, 2) God is the source of life and gives life, and 3) abortion kills real people -- we can establish . . .
THE PRINCIPLES:
God views human life as beginning at conception. In the Bible, God always describes an unborn child as a distinct person. The Bible never makes a distinction between a fetus, an unborn fully developed baby, and a baby that has been delivered. As a matter of fact, Luke, a doctor by profession, uses the very same Greek word when describing an unborn child, a newborn baby, and a toddler (See Luke 1:41; 2:12, 16). He makes no distinction and, in so doing, shows us that a baby in the womb is just as much a human and just as much to be protected as a child who has been born.
In God's eyes, then, they are the same and are on equal footing in value. With that it mind, consider these very important principles. Please don't simply skim over these verses -- there are many, but still only a small representation of what God's Word says about life. Take time to contemplate each one and let it sink in. Don't be in a hurry to finish reading today's letter.
1. God is creator of all things, including human beings -- even babies in the womb.
> (Isa 44:24) -- "Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, 'I, the Lord, am the maker of all things, stretching out the heavens by Myself and spreading out the earth all alone, . . ."
> (Acts 17:24) -- "The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; . ."
> (Job10:8-12) -- "Your hands fashioned and made me altogether, and would You destroy me? Remember now, that You have made me as clay; and would You turn me into dust again? . . . "
> (Ps 100:3) -- "Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture."
> (Isa 45:9-11) -- "Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? Woe to the one who says to a father, ‘What have you begotten?’ or to a mother, ‘What have you brought to birth?’ “This is what the LORD says— the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker: Concerning things to come, do you question me about my children, or give me orders about the work of my hands?"
> (Gen 1:27) -- "God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."
> (Gen 2:7) -- "Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
> (Job 31:15) -- "Did not He who made me in the womb make him, and the same one fashion us in the womb?"
> (Isa 44:2) -- "Thus says the Lord who made you and formed you from the womb, who will help you, ‘Do not fear, O Jacob My servant; And you Jeshurun whom I have chosen . . .'."
2. Life itself is a gift from God, Who is, Himself Life. I find it unthinkable that anyone, and especially Christians, can take life so casually as to disregard its value and then be willing to snuff it out. One of the things which we have already discussed is the extraordinary insight our founders had in recognizing that life came from God, that it is an unalienable right, and that from it flow all other rights we may have. These men understood, as they scoured the great pages of past generations and searched the scriptures, that life originated with God. No wonder Jesus was able to describe Himself as being the way, the truth, and The Life!
The reason life is lost in our nation is because life is cheap in our psyche. Nonetheless, God gave us life, and then gave His life so my life and your life could be saved. If you want to know why some people take life so cheaply, it is because they take God cheaply and carelessly, in spite of what scripture says.
> (Eccl 11:5) -- "As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything."
> (Zech12:1) -- "The burden of the word of the Lord concerning Israel: Thus declares the Lord, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth and formed the spirit of man within him:"
> (Gen 9:6) -- "Whoever sheds man's blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man."
> (Ps 36:9) -- " For with You is the fountain of life. . ."
> (Gen 2:7) -- "Then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being."
> (Job 33:4) -- “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life."
> (Eccl 12:1) -- "Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, 'I have no pleasure in them';"
> (Acts 17:25) -- ". . . nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;"
> (Neh 9:6) -- "You alone are the Lord. You have made the heavens, The heaven of heavens with all their host, The earth and all that is on it, The seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them And the heavenly host bows down before You."
> (Jn 1:3-4) -- "All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men."
3. God has a plan for every human being, both in the womb and out. There is no such thing as an insignificant person, whether within the womb or already born. Time and time again God mentions specific people whom He had already named and for whom He had a plan long before they were ever born. To assume that some people are born without a divine purpose is to not understand the nature and plans of God. As was said many years ago, "God don't make no junk!"
> (Gal 1:15) -- "But when He who had set me apart before I was born, and Who called me by His grace, . . ."
> (Jer 27:5) -- “It is I who by My great power and My outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to Me."
> (Isa 49:1) -- "Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar. The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother He named my name."
> (Jer 1:5) -- “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you . . ."
> (Jer 29:11) -- "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."
> (Eph 6:4) -- "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord."
> (Isa 44:2) -- "Thus says the LORD who made you And formed you from the womb, who will help you, . . ."
4. Children are a gift and a blessing from God. As parents we sometimes may wonder about that when one of those "stressful" moments come while raising them, but deep down we know we had kids because blessed us with them.
> (Ps 127:3) -- "Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from Him."
> (Jn 16:21) -- "
When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world."> (Ps 127:4) -- "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth."
> (Mk 9:37) -- “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”
> (Mk 10:14) -- "Let the children come to Me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God."
> (Proverbs 17:6) -- "Grandchildren are the crown of old men, and the glory of sons is their fathers."
5. A family is blessed by having children. In fact, "the more the merrier"! Not only have we been told by godless voices that we should kill our unborn, but we've also been told to minimize the size of our families -- just the opposite of what the Bible tells us. Not only that, but we have also been intimidated into looking askance at married couples who have lots of children -- as if they are sexually overactive and should "slow down a bit". This is another ploy of the enemy to counteract what God has commanded. So, . . .
> (Prov 20:7) -- "The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!"
> (Ps 127:5) -- "How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; they will not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies in the gate."
> (Ps 128:1-5) -- "Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways! You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord."
> (Deut 28:1-4) -- "Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the country. Blessed shall be the offspring of your body and the produce of your ground and the offspring of your beasts, the increase of your herd and the young of your flock."
> (Prov 23:4) -- "The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him."
> (Ps 8:2) -- "Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger."
> (Gen 24:60) -- ". . . and may your descendants possess the gate of those who hate them.”
> (Isa 61:9) -- "Then their offspring will be known among the nations, and their descendants in the midst of the peoples. All who see them will recognize them because they are the offspring whom the Lord has blessed."
> (Mt 18:10) -- "See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven."
> (Prov 22:6) -- "Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it."
> (
Deut 6:6-7) -- "These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up."
6. God's Word is truth -- absolute truth. May I be a bit confrontational here? For many Christians, this is the reality -- they really do not believe the Bible. Some are not convinced it is divinely inspired -- that is, literally "God exhaled" -- and others believe it is inspired, but take it neither literally nor seriously. They see it as optional reading, and seldom read it -- if ever. The late great expositor Ron Dunn once said, "We only believe the part of the Bible that we obey." As long as the Bible is taken lightly or not literally, abortion will be a highly debatable topic among professing Christians.
In a 2009 article entitled,
Practical Apologetics: Annihilating Abortion Arguments, Christian apologist Hank Hanegraaff stated, . . ."Biblical pretexts are used by pro-abortionists who want to retain some semblance of religiosity while they espouse the radical planks of the abortion movement. The most common argument is that the Bible nowhere specifically condemns abortion or identifies it as the killing of an innocent human life. Such an argument, however, hides the real biblical position, which is that the preborn are fully human and alive (Ps. 139:13-16) and that killing an innocent human being (murder) is sin — a violation of the Seventh Commandment (Exod. 20:13)."
I can understand why secularists, agnostics, atheists, and other unbelievers will choose to discount God's Word -- after all, why should they care what it says? But, for Christians to do the same, I find it incomprehensible. While I have addressed this frequently in the past, and even fairly recently, this is the foundation upon which all theories, hypotheses, facts and principles must be built if they are to have any chance of lasting. God's Word is truth -- it is absolute truth -- it is ultimate truth -- it is Final truth.
7. Abortion is a horrible act that kills what God has created. While man may debate it and disagree with it, it is true in God's eyes -- and should be in ours. If all the presuppositions are true -- and they are, -- and if all these principles are true -- and they are, -- then we can draw no other conclusion that an abortion snuffs out the life of a human being God created.
If you were to do a study of many of the ancient pagan cities --take Sodom and Gomorrah, for example -- you would find that two characteristics dominated their cultures. Those were idolatry (worshiping false idols) and all sorts of sexual immorality and perversion, ranging from bestiality (sex with animals), homosexuality, fornication (sex outside of marriage), adultery (sex outside the limits of married life), and abortion. You can understand, then, why God so hates abortion as much as He does anything else.
If life begins at conception which takes place within hours of sperm being introduced into the egg, if all of the DNA that determines everything about that new life is already present and has already been programmed to be a very special human being that is unique from all others, then we can only reach one conclusion -- abortion, for whatever reason and though noble it may seem, is killing a human being made in the image of God to be like Him, made in the likeness of God to have purpose, and given stewardship authority to act and live like Him. Truly, abortion can be characterized as being equivalent to the Israelites offering up their children on the white-hot arms of Molech, the Phoenician god of fertility, harvest, and war.
8. God is angry when His most prized creation is destroyed. It is tragic -- and incredibly dangerous -- that man does not view human life and the unborn in the same way God does. God does not act kindly toward those who destroy that of His creation that He cherishes the most.
> (Pro 6:16-17) -- "There are six things which the Lord hates, yes, seven which are an abomination to Him: Haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, . . ."
> (Gen 9:6) -- “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God He made man."
THE DIABOLICAL UNSEEN AGENDA AND INTENT OF ABORTION:
Have you ever considered exactly why it may be that abortion is so hated by God, but at the same time so wantonly practiced in America? If you don't see the connection between abortion and God's plan for man, you'll never understand why abortion is such a controversial matter. In his June 5, 2020 article, What Does the Bible Say About Abortion?, Dr. Brian Clouse, PhD, wrote, . . .
"Pro-abortionists generally base their opinions on neither science nor religion, but mere feelings. As MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry said: 'When does life begin? I submit the answer depends an awful lot on the feeling of the parents.'5 And, when asked what a preborn baby feels when it is being killed by abortion, abortionist Michael Ballard replied, 'Oh, I think that depends on your philosophy.'5 In other words, abortion advocates only use both theology and science as weapons, not in a genuine and honest search for the truth. Their appeals to the Bible are irrelevant to an honest, scientific discussion of the case against abortion."
You've probably never heard of William Brackton. He was actually known as "the father of the common law" and lived from 1216-1272 during the time that "The Great Charter" of England was implemented. Interestingly, Brackton was referenced during the Roe v. Wade episode.
Roe reluctantly admitted that Bracton categorized the abortion of a “formed or quickened” fetus as a form of homicide, or as Brackton clearly called it, “the slaying of man by man.”
In all my years, I have never delved into the abortion topic in such a comprehensive way as I have for this series. Not only have my convictions not changed a single iota, but they have intensified more than I can describe. I could have once been called a "radical" on the matter, but today I think I can wear with pride the label, "fanatic". I have never been more convinced than I am now that abortion should have absolutely no consideration whatsoever in one's mind as an alternative.
True, I can understand how a non-Christian with no spiritual anchor could construe the idea that abortion is acceptable, at least in certain circumstances, but I find it even more mind-boggling now than before that any Christian could find any instance where abortion was appropriate. Clearly not every Christian feels as I do -- but they should, in my opinion. I cannot find any place in the Christian life and the teachings of the Bible that would allow for abortion. Having said that, I refuse to condemn or demean any Christian who disagrees.
So, this raises an enormously huge question ---- "What, then, is the real driving motivation behind abortion?"
In a word, -- and even though the overwhelming majority of pro-abortion advocates and practitioners rarely recognize this truth -- the primary motivation behind abortion is found in one word . . . HATRED. If you know anything at all about the Bible, you know that the fundamental motivation behind abortion is far more than the rebellious demand for "the right to choose". Nor is it the passion of the abortion industry to make money from the misfortune of women who don't want to have the baby.
It goes much further back in history than "Jane Doe", further back than our founders, and much further back than almost all of human history. It goes all the way back even beyond the Garden of Eden. To better understand that -- and why Psalm 139 is so crucial to understanding the horrors of abortion, we need to look at three other scriptures -- Ezekiel 2812-15, Isa 14:12-14 and Psalm 8:1-9.
You may not see it just now, but you will see what I believe is the driving motivation behind family violence, divorce, marital unfaithfulness, homosexuality, child trafficking, -- and abortion. So, consider . . .
+Ezek 28:12-15 -- Often when the biblical writers were addressing human personalities, events, and circumstances, they are also addressing something in the invisible spiritual world at the same time. Psalm 22 is an example, as is Psalm 23 and 24, where in all three Psalms David is referring to the coming person of Jesus Christ. In Psalm 22, He is the suffering sacrifice. In Psalm 23, He is the Great Shepherd. And, in Psalm 24, He is the risen coming King ascended to the Hill of the Lord.
It is the same with Ezekiel 28. While the prophet is describing human kings throughout the chapter, he also address by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit another "king" in the spiritual world, none other than Lucifer Himself. Ezekiel writes, . . .
"Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "You had the seal of perfection, Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, Was in you. On the day that you were created They were prepared. You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created Until unrighteousness was found in you."
In this text we find Lucifer in all of his regal refinery, his royal reign, and the perfection of his very nature -- that is, ". . . until unrighteousness was found in you." So, what was that "unrighteousness"? Well, Ezekiel doesn't tell us, but Isaiah does.
+ Isa 14:12-14 -- In this passage we find the great archangel, Lucifer, turning on his Creator and mounting a rebellious insurrection against God in the heavenly world. It reads in part, . . .
"How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.' Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit."
I certainly can't take the time to dissect that scripture in a way I would like, but it is crucial to understanding why abortion, along with other sins against man, God's most prized creation, are so rampant. In this text we see God's pre-Adamic creation at his greatest beauty and highest role of authority as God's "Prime Minister" of the angelic world and apparent delegated ruler over at least the earth of God's planetary design. Nobody in the angelic world was in a greater position of authority, power, and prestige than Lucifer, "the bright and morning star".
So, what does that have to do with mankind? What does that have to do with abortion? Finally, against the backdrop of these previous two texts, now consider Psalm 8 (and also Psalm 144), particularly verses 3-8.
"O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth, who have displayed Your splendor above the heavens! From the mouth of infants and nursing babes You have established strength because of Your adversaries, to make the enemy and the revengeful cease.
"When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; what is man that You take thought of him, And the son of man that You care for him? Yet You have made him a little lower than God [or the angels], And You crown him with glory and majesty! You make him to rule over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, And also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea, whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
"O LORD, our Lord, How majestic is Your name in all the earth!"
If you were to go back to Genesis 1:26-30, 2:15, and 2:19-20, you will find that God gave to mankind the very assignment that had belonged to Lucifer ---- UNTIL, "unrighteousness was found" in him. Try to imagine what went through Satan's mind as he watched God bring order back to the chaos that his rebellion against the Most High God had caused. Have you ever had someone less qualified than you take a job promotion for which you were qualified and you deserved? Has someone ever bought something "out from under" you that you intended to buy?
My point is this ---- I believe with all my heart that from the very creation of man in the Garden, Satan has been on an endless campaign to get even with God by destroying that which God cherished most -- man, and the human family. Today, almost every imaginable sin being committed today is somehow pointing directly at the destruction of man. Whether it be drugs, pornography, political corruption, child trafficking, homosexuality, sodomy, incest, fornication, adultery, -- and abortion! -- it is Satan's attempt to destroy mankind.
It is for this reason that I am so compelled to try to expose what is really behind the abortion industry. Imagine how may loving families have never become a reality because a baby was aborted. Think of the great leaders who never breathed air on their own because they were aborted. Think of the crescendo of great music that was never written and profound prose never written because those who would have created it were aborted. And, try to fathom the great evangelists and pastors who were never born to proclaim the message of the Gospel around the world.
When you realize that more than 63 million abortions have been performed since 1973 because of Roe v. Wade, means that more than 1,320,000 babies a year perished on the arms of Molech. That's nearly 4,000 per day! Every hour for the past 48 years, America has killed over 160 innocent babies in the womb.
And you still want to know why God has been bringing judgment on us in so many different ways since 1973???
David understood it 3,000 years ago!
"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them." (Psalm 139:13-16)
By no means do I want to imply that people who have had abortions, are considering having one, or have performed them, are actually willfully and knowingly cooperating with Satan to destroy mankind. Far from it! As a point of fact, very few such people ever consider the thought that they are carrying out Satan's efforts to destroy, one by one, God's most prized creation.
But this is the real agenda, behind the scenes in the hidden spirit world. It is true, so very true that Satan has not once changed his agenda. It remains the same today as it was in the Garden of Eden when he first laid eyes on God's special creation.
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
He isn't called the Destroyer, the Deceiver, the Liar, and other despicable descriptives for nothing. And, as heinous as Satan's plan is as Jesus described it, I am so grateful that He had an addendum -- "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the Good Shepherd; and the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep."
So, . . . .
FINALLY -- THERE IS FORGIVENESS!
I know of no greater expression of God's goodness and mercy than His willingness to forgive us of our sins -- even if it were to e the sin of having, supporting, or encouraging an abortion. As far as I understand from the Bible, there is only one sin that is "unforgivable", and that is the sin of rejecting Christ as one's Savior and Lord.
I have often been asked what I thought the "unforgivable sin" was, and I believe that there is the one which God cannot forgive. And, it's not abortion. It's not that He won't, it's that He can't because of His very nature and character, and because when someone rejects Christ, he rejects the one singular way by which he can have a relationship with God. Jesus Himself said, "No one comes to the Father except through Me." (Jn 14:7). It is rejecting Christ that God cannot forgive.
Those who have had an abortion, therefore, are not beyond hope. They are not outside of God's grace. They indeed can receive God’s forgiveness. If they will accept God’s view of life, and accept His Son as their Redeemer, they can not only be forgiven, they can be cleansed, restored, and healed of the wounds that abortion inflicted upon them. So many times scripture offers that promised forgiveness, new life, and a process of healing and rebuilding.
> (Ps 103:8-12) -- "The LORD is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness. He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us."
> (Ps 86:5) -- "For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You."
> Micah 7:18-19) -- "Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea."
> )Isa 38:17) -- "Lo, for my own welfare I had great bitterness; It is You who has kept my soul from the pit of nothingness, For You have cast all my sins behind Your back."
> (Isa 55:7) -- "Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the LORD, and He will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon."
> (I Jn 1:9) -- "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
In His Bond, By His Grace, and for His Kingdom,
Bob Tolliver -- Romans 1:11
Life Unlimited Ministries
LUMglobal
[email protected]
Copyright November, 2021
"A fire kept burning on the hearthstone of my heart, and I took up the burden of the day with fresh courage and hope." -- Charles F. McKoy
"If Jesus had preached the same message that many ministers preach today, He would never have been crucified." -- Leonard Ravenhill
"The time will come when instead of shepherds feeding the sheep, the Church will have clowns entertaining the goats." -- Charles H. Spurgeon
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