'40 More Days and the Nation Will Be Destroyed'

5/27/2015 LARRY TOMCZAK  charisma News

Can we avoid calamity if we repent? (Flickr/Creative Commons)

Use your sanctified imagination to envision the following make-believe scenario.

Joel Osteen, Andy Stanley, Joyce Meyer, Ed Young Jr., Dave Ramsey, James Robison, Ken Copeland, Pat Robertson, Matt Crouch and other high-profile Christian leaders all begin their programs with an agreed-upon in-advance, sober warning to their collective millions of listeners.

"The following message is completely uncharacteristic of our normal broadcast. But we are not living in normal times. We can't keep pretending God's judgments aren't real. What's happening currently can't be dismissed as coincidental but providential. We have come to the conclusion that God has directed leaders across this nation to simply communicate eight words: '40 more days and America will be destroyed.' That's what He instructed us to say. But there still is hope if we believe that God will have mercy on us if we humbly turn back to Him and the ways of our Founding Fathers."

"Larry, that's unrealistic and too far fetched!"

Do you know that the greatest awakening in world history took place when an obedient servant of God echoed those exact words in a different location? The leader and the people were so shaken by the severity of the message that they turned from their sinful ways and returned to God.

"When God saw their actions, that they turned from their evil ways, He changed His mind about the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it" (Jonah 3:10).

Read the entire account of this amazing, historical event in Jonah 3:3–10.

What Will It Take to Awaken Us?

On an individual basis, scores of people say their conversion took place after a series of events jolted them to humble themselves and turn to God. Should we not expect something similar needful for a nation at large?

"Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses" (Ps. 107:5-6).

An amalgam of unexpected, swift events exploding in tandem with each other would certainly get the attention of millions in America. The following are real and within the realm of possibility very shortly: devastating economic collapse; horrific drought, gas and food shortages; Middle East war; a series of coordinated Islamic terrorist attacks; outbreak of new AIDS-like virus; racial riots erupting nationwide; multiple massive earthquakes, EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) Internet-crippling attack; assassinations and political chaos.

David Stockman, Ronald Reagan's former Budget Director, says of the economy, "All hell is about to break loose!"

ISIS just released a statement, as reported in Charisma News, that they have over 70 trained terrorists in 15 U.S. states now.

To picture what it could be like when some of these events explode on the scene, picture a segment from the film "Mad Max" or the TV show "Walking Dead." [I don't watch these but have seen pictures from them.] Or visualize a city like those in the Ukraine—once-thriving cities now lawless centers of desperate people who've become marauders and looters carrying out criminal acts with impunity.

Our parent's generation exhibited patience, sacrifice, discipline and civility in difficult times. Being realistic (recall Ferguson or Baltimore recently?) and not dismissing all of this as nonsensical conspiracy theories, do we really expect people in a crisis today to let others go ahead of them in lines and folks patiently serve one another amid shortages, curfews and roving vigilantes?

God hasn't given us a spirit of fear, but it might wake people up to pause and ponder some of these coming realities. Just read afresh what Jesus said would be taking place prior to His Return.

How Should We Then Live?

In the '60s, theologian and prophet Francis Schaeffer posed this question to Christians. Analyzing events in history and foretelling what was coming to our nation, he warned us of this implosion while calling us to engage our culture and beseech God for divine intervention.

Christians can no longer settle for "status quo" religion with neatly packaged, sanitized, inspirational programs and services while ignoring the epidemic of Christians being persecuted and Western civilization crumbling. In England, the former Archbishop of Canterbury said, "Christianity is facing extinction in Great Britain."

We are currently engaged in a titanic, unprecedented struggle with forces of evil and must categorically reject wishful thinking that this is simply temporary, cyclical or manageable. We are at a tipping point where either we experience a divine intervention of God in a Third Great Awakening or we will witness the fulfillment of A.W. Tozer's prophetic warning: "Historians will conclude that we of the 20th century had the genius to create a great civilization but we lacked the moral wisdom to preserve it."

One Word Captures Our Charge

In Matthew 24 and Mark 13, Jesus told us the signs of the end of the age. He basically summed everything up with these words, "He who perseveres till the end will be saved. " (Mt.24:13; Mk.13:13). And in Romans 5:3 God tells us, "...suffering produces perseverance."

There simply are no shortcuts in difficult days. We must draw upon the grace of God and make a quality decision that we will persevere.

Presently I'm reading a book called The Churchill Factor - How One Man Made History. This biography of the towering figure of the 20th century who saved Western civilization from extinction demonstrated one overarching quality: perseverance.

When his fellow countrymen and Cabinet were capitulating to Hitler and his war machine, Winston Churchill told them to persevere, to fight and not to negotiate. "If this long island story of ours is to end at last, let it end only when each one of us lies choking in his own blood upon the ground!" With this almost Shakespearean climax, he rallied them to press on till victory was theirs.

Days ago I spent some time with my wife in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, called the "Secret City" during World War II. Here 75,000 citizens worked tirelessly to develop the atomic bomb to ultimately defeat Japan and bring about their surrender. These patriots, alongside of our servicemen and women who gave their lives on battlefields, and the D-Day invasion persevered to secure our freedom.

During these turbulent times, if you need a fresh read to bolster your perseverance, let me suggest a book called Staying Power by my year friend of 33 years, Ken Roberts (kenlroberts.com).

Ken faced incredible adversity when his wife of 25 years was killed in a car accident, a church building project and pastoral team imploded and he resigned his ministry in a mudslide of despair.

Yet Ken Roberts drew upon the grace of God and discovered lessons to sustainability. He persevered and today has new life, a new wife and a new ministry impacting multitudes. I highly suggest readers check it out.

As we await the Supreme Court ruling that may tip the scales in a way that may accelerate judgment on our land, may perseverance be our watchword.

Remember the words of the prophet Jeremiah, "If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?" (Jer. 12:5).

Larry Tomczak is a best-selling author of 8 books with 43 years of trusted ministry experience. He is a cultural commentator whose weekly articles appear on sites reaching 26 million monthly. Connect and view short video commentaries at larrytomczak.com.

Visit Larry at larrytomczak.com, his Facebook page , and follow him on Twitter @larrytomczak.

Did you enjoy this blog? Click here to receive Charisma News by email.

Some Honest Questions for Andy Stanley - Dr. Michael Brown

Dr. Michael Brown

Want to receive In the Line of Fire by email? Sign up here

• 

Some Honest Questions 

for Andy Stanley

 2/26/2014 MICHAEL BROWN

Andy Stanley

According to megachurch pastor Andy Stanley, if your religious convictions conflict with your ability to serve those you differ with, that’s your business, but you should “leave Jesus out of it.”

What exactly did he mean by this? And has he thought through the implications of his statement?

Since I have been unable to reach Pastor Stanley directly and since he expressed his views publicly, I want to take this opportunity to raise some questions for him—really, for all of us—to think through carefully.

But first let me give the background to the controversy, which surrounded Kansas House Bill 2453, designed to protect religious individuals, groups or businesses from being penalized for refusal to participate in services related to same-sex marriage.

Although the bill has been dropped from consideration for the moment, many critics have been up in arms about it, comparing the bill to Jim Crow laws. (For a refutation of that complete misrepresentation of the bill, see Ryan T. Anderson’s article“‘Homosexual Jim Crow Laws’? Get Real.”)

One of those critics was Fox News correspondent Kirsten Powers, who wrote that pastor Andy Stanley told her that “he finds it ‘offensive that Christians would leverage faith to support the Kansas law.’ He said, ‘Serving people we don’t see eye to eye with is the essence of Christianity. Jesus died for a world with which he didn’t see eye to eye. If a bakery doesn’t want to sell its products to a gay couple, it’s their business. Literally. But leave Jesus out of it.’”

He further stated, “Jesus taught that if a person is divorced and gets remarried, it’s adultery. So if (Christians) don’t have a problem doing business with people getting remarried, why refuse to do business with gays and lesbians.”

Here are my questions for Pastor Stanley, and I ask these for the purpose of clarification, not as an attack on his faith or his commitment to the Lord:

1. Were you responding to the actual content of the bill, or were you responding to how critics misrepresented the bill? As Ryan Anderson notes, “The bill would protect all citizens from being forced by the government into recognizing or celebrating a same-sex marriage if it ran contrary to their religious beliefs.”

So, the issue is not whether a bakery would be willing to sell cookies to a same-sex couple or would “do business with gays and lesbians.” The issue is whether the bakers could be punished by the government if they declined to provide a wedding cake for a same-sex ceremony, which would mean inscribing it to “Bob and Bill” and putting two male figurines on top of the cake. Were you aware of this distinction?

2. Why do you find it “offensive” that people of faith also “leverage faith” when it comes to freedoms of conscience, speech and religion? If the government told you that you were required to perform same-sex weddings in your church, would you not “leverage faith” in your response?

3. You stated, “Serving people we don’t see eye to eye with is the essence of Christianity,” and I absolutely understand the point you are trying to make. But are you telling me that, if I am in the medical supply business and I am asked to supply medical equipment for a late-term abortionist, I should do so, since “serving people we don’t see eye to eye with is the essence of Christianity”? Are you saying that it is the “essence of Christianity” to help a late-term abortionist rip up a baby in the womb?

Are you telling me that if I lived in the days of slavery and I was asked by some slave traders to manufacture shackles for the slaves that I should do so with excellence and diligence, since “serving people we don’t see eye to eye with is the essence of Christianity”?

Is that what you mean? If not, could you clarify what is different between these scenarios and that of a Christian being asked to help facilitate a homosexual marriage, something that our Father clearly abhors?

4. Do you see a difference between Jesus dying for a world “with which He didn’t see eye to eye” and Jesus participating in sin? According to the Scriptures, Jesus didn’t participate in the stoning of the woman caught in adultery—to the contrary, by His words, He stopped it from happening—but He certainly died for those who wanted to stone the adulteress. (He died for her too.)

Can you agree that it is one thing to lay our lives down for our lost friends and neighbors and another thing to participate in their sin? Didn’t Paul tell us directly in Ephesians 5 not to partner with the sons of disobedience in their works of darkness?

5. Is it right for you to tell a Christian company that if they want to act on their convictions, that’s their business, but they should “leave Jesus out of it”?How does a Christian business “leave Jesus out of” their business? How do people who seek to put Jesus first in every area of their lives now leave Him out of their lives when it comes to making important moral and spiritual decisions?

Pastor Stanley, if you were a Christian photographer and a nudist colony asked you to do a photo shoot for their annual volleyball tournament, would you “leave Jesus out of” your decision and just tell them, “I’d rather not”? Or would you tell them that, as a follower of Jesus, you could not do this in good conscience? Or perhaps you would do the very best photo shoot they’ve ever had, since “serving people we don’t see eye to eye with is the essence of Christianity”? Is that what you mean?

My dear brother, would you please clarify your position? The stakes are very high.

Michael Brown is author of Hyper-Grace: Exposing the Dangers of the Modern Grace Message and host of the nationally syndicated talk radio show The Line of Fire on the Salem Radio Network. He is also president of FIRE School of Ministry and director of the Coalition of Conscience. Follow him at AskDrBrown on Facebook or at @drmichaellbrown on Twitter.

Did you enjoy this blog from Michael Brown? Click here to receive it by email.