34,000 Black Churches Break Ties With Presbyterian Church USA

 3/27/2015 ANTHONY EVANS  charisma news

More than 34,000 churches are leaving the Texas PCUSA over gay marriage. (Flickr/Creative Commons)

The National Black Church Initiative (NBCI), a faith-based coalition of 34,000 churches comprised of 15 denominations and 15.7 million African Americans has broken its fellowship with Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA) following its recent vote to approve same-sex marriage.  

The Presbyterian General Assembly, the top legislative body of the PCUSA, voted last June to revise the constitutional language defining marriage. This arbitrary change of Holy Scripture is a flagrantly pretentious and illegitimate maneuver by a body that has no authority whatsoever to alter holy text.   

Rev. Anthony Evans, NBCI President noted: 

"NBCI and its membership base are simply standing on the Word of God within the mind of Christ. We urge our brother and sisters of the PCUSA to repent and be restored to fellowship." 

"PCUSA's manipulation represents a universal sin against the entire church and its members. With this action, PCUSA can no longer base its teachings on 2,000 years of Christian scripture and tradition, and call itself a Christian entity in the body of Christ.  It has forsaken its right by this single wrong act.  

"Apostle Paul warns us about this when he declared in Galatians 1:8 that there are those who will preach another Gospel. 

"For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him...For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. 

"No church has the right to change the Word of God. By voting to redefine marriage PCUSA automatically forfeits Christ's saving grace. There is always redemption in the body of Christ through confession of faith and adhering to Holy Scripture.   

"In this case, PCUSA deliberately voted to change the Word of God and the interpretation of holy marriage between one man and one woman. This is why we must break fellowship with them and urge the entire Christendom to do so as well."

"The L-rd has made known His salvation" - Richard & Carolyn Hyde

Website  |  About Us  |  Music  |  Yeshua Project  |  Living Stones  |  Contact Us Click above to see photos                            March, 2015 The L-rd has made known His salvation; He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.  He has remembered His lovingkindness and His faithfulness to the house of Israel.  All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our G-d.  Psalm 98:2-3 Dear Friends and Prayer Partners,     While strolling through a park, an elderly Orthodox Jewish man sitting on a park bench motioned for me to come and join him.  He'd made Aliyah years ago from Romania and for some reason he began telling me how he recently visited a church in the Galilee!  He recalled how a man appeared in the empty church and he knew that it was " 'Yesus Christos' but how could it be him when he's dead?"  It took a micro-second for me to reply, "No, He's not dead.  He is alive!"   Another time while hitch-hiking, a haredi man picked me up.  Now these ultra-Orthodox Jews generally don't even look at women but more and more the L-rd brings them into my path.   As we spoke about our lives, I shared about how we host tour groups from the nations in our home with the hope of raising up more friends of Israel among Christians.  When he asked me if I was a Christian, I answered that I'm a Jewish believer in Messiah Yeshua.  He was shocked but said nothing for awhile.  Then suddenly he commented on how he doesn't like the same style of music over and over.  I agreed and we had a nice conversation about music, but he kept looking at me like I was from another planet.  In a way, I guess that's true :)  Thank you, L-rd for how You are revealing Yourself to Your lost sheep and that You can actually use us in building Your Kingdom on earth! Untouched Photo The Glory of the L-rd will be revealed and all flesh will see it together! Is. 40:5 On March 20 we met with other believers for a Solemn Assembly and a time of prayer and worship in Jerusalem.  We traveled together to a place near the Kotel to blow our shofars and during the solar eclipse a friend took this photo that was unlike all his other photos.  It seems that the Glory of the L-rd was shining brightly upon us and angels joined in as we declared His Word and His Kingdom near the Holy of Holies! Southern France, Switzerland and Germany The L-rd has called us to return to Europe to continue to call Jewish people home and to raise up more Jeremiah 16:16  fishermen among the Body of Messiah.   G-d willing we'll be there from mid-June through the first week of July.  We're also planning a journey from Florida to Texas along the Gulf Coast this November so thank you for prayerfully considering us coming to minister in worship and Word... Election Victory for Benjamin Netanyahu Over 75% of Israelis made their voices heard in the recent election.  The majority of Galileans voted for Bibi and the excitement was almost tangible as people shouted from the streets to keep Israel strong, safe and united!  Please keep Bibi in prayer as he now has the undaunting task of putting together a coalition that will govern Israel through this next season of the Shmeta and the tetrad of blood red moons.     The Living Stones Experience Come to our home in the beautiful Galilee for worship, Israeli folk dancing and hear how the L-rd is moving in Israel today.  Enjoy dinner from our balcony with its beautiful view of the Kineret (Sea of Galilee), Golan and Jordan Valley.   We are so grateful for your love, prayers and support as we reach the lost with the love of our Messiah Yeshua!  Thank you for praying for Ariel and Shayla and family as they travel and minister in the USA.   Also we appreciate prayers for good health as we've had some strong attacks lately.  Carolyn seems to have experienced another TIA, mini-stroke.  The enemy is not too pleased with what we're doing... Blessings in Yeshua's love,  Richard & Carolyn Hyde Heart of G-d Ministries PO Box 112, Poriya Kfar Avoda  15220  Israel PO Box 461546, San Antonio, TX  78246  USA

We write L-rd and G-d in this way because it's a Jewish custom that Carolyn grew up with and it's done only out of reverence and honor for the name of the L-rd.  Thanks for understanding.

Exhibit Reveals Major Chapter in Jewish History

Exhibit Reveals Major Chapter in Jewish History

By Julie Stahl and Chris Mitchell
CBN News Middle East Bureau
Friday, March 27, 2015

JERUSALEM, Israel -- One of the most significant periods in Israel's history came during the Babylonian exile described in the books of Daniel, Jeremiah. and Ezekiel.

Today, some ancient artifacts from that period, never before displayed, are providing new insight.

"By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down and wept when we remembered Zion." These are the opening words of Psalm 137, written when King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and carried the Judeans away, captive to an area that's now present day Iraq.

It's also the name of a new exhibit at Jerusalem's Bible Lands Museum that chief curator Dr. Filip Vukosavovic calls an "incredible puzzle."

"What we do here is for the first time tell a complete story of the Babylonian exile from approximately 604 B.C. when Nebuchadnezzar comes for the first time to the Land of Israel up to 539 [BC] when Cyrus …and the Persians conquer Babylon and release all the exiles," Vukosavovic told CBN News.

Much of the information for the exhibit came from clay tablets written in Akkadian, an ancient cuneiform script. On display for the first time ever, they tell of daily life in Al-Yahuda, the city of Judah in Babylonia.

Museum Director Amanda Weiss said the exhibit also opens a major chapter of Jewish history.

"Probably next to … the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, this is the most important documentation that has ever been revealed," Weiss told CBN News. "It's the thread that ties us to our ancestors."

An ancient tablet next to a modern one tells the story. The texts talk about real people -- exiled Judeans -- in everyday life scenarios, from rental agreements to tax issues.

"One of these people is Haggai, son of Ahikam," Vukosavovic explained. "I have actually chosen Haggai, simply [to] narrate the story of the Babylonia[n] exile that has never been told before."

Three animated movies feature Haggai telling the story from the first exiles all the way to Babylon.

Vukosavovic said he met Haggai in these texts.

"I know his brothers. I know his father. I know his grandfather and grandmother. You know, I know his great grandfather -- all this through these new texts that nobody has seen before," Vukosavovic said.

Weiss said one of her favorite parts of the exhibit is the model of the Al-Yahuda village.

"We actually are showing interactively a scene in daily life. And you can see plowing the fields and rowing down the canals and the rivers, people cooking in their home fires in the evening, and the date palm trees," Weiss said. "You get a sense of the cycle of life."

Part of what the tablets reveal is that the exiles followed Jeremiah's command to live prosperous lives.

"Build houses and live in them and plant gardens and eat their produce…multiply there and do not decrease. And seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare." -Jeremiah 29:5-7.

"So in 539, Cyrus the Great and the Persians conquered Babylon," Vukosavovic said. "Cyrus simply releases all the exiles. Many decide to stay, like Haggai and his family. They had established lives, they had rich lives, they had their families -- they had their schools."

"And only in 1950-1952, following the establishment of the State of Israel, the State of Iraq simply expelled thousands and thousands of Jews," he explained further. "So that is the full circle of the Jewish people that were exiled and returned after two-and-a-half thousand years."

Watch video: By-the-Rivers-of-Babylon

A Year in Prison for Defending the Cross in China

The Global Lane

Gary Lane

CBN News Senior International Reporter

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A Year in Prison for Defending the Cross in China

Defending the Cross in China will get you jail time.

Just ask Pastor Huang Yizi. He spoke out publicly against government removal of crosses from churches in Zhejiang Province. This week a court in Pingyang city sentenced him to one year in prison. He's been jailed since last August.

Huang was found guilty of gathering crowds to disrupt social order.Huang's lawyers say he only encouraged church members to oppose the illegal action of government authorities by restoring church crosses to their rightful places.

The Zhejiang government removed 400 rooftop crosses throughout the province last year, maintaining they had violated building codes. But Christians say in reality, the communists didn't want daily reminders of Christianity's rapid growth throughout China; they detested crosses becoming a regular fixture of Zhejiang's city skylines.

Huang's case will be appealed.

Pray that he will remain strong in his faith and that he will be reunited soon with his family and friends.

Find out more about Huang at the China Aid web site.

And it's not just Christians who have been targeted by government officials. A human rights organization was raided this week because its workers have been speaking out against the groping of women on public transportation.

Read more here: China Human Rights Raid.

CBN News

American Jewish Leaders Concerned with Obama Rhetoric

CBNNews.com

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

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JERUSALEM, Israel -- Washington-based leaders of the American Jewish community are becoming increasingly concerned with the Obama administration's seeming predisposition to criticize and marginalize Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

From their displeasure with Netanyahu's address to Congress in early March to his apology to Israeli Arabs and clarification of his rejection of a "two-state solution," administration spokespersons question his sincerity.

Jerusalem Post Washington correspondent Michael Wilner spoke with several Jewish community leaders Tuesday evening, among them David Harris, executive director of the American Jewish Committee and Abe Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League.

Harris said, "The U.S. appears to have a reasoned interest in prolonging the crisis," something he found a "cause for deep anxiety and puzzlement."

Foxman said he's "troubled by statements now coming out of the White House."

"What we are hearing from the Obama administration raises deeper questions about their intentions and perspectives," noting that "from the beginning of the Obama years, there was a disturbing indifference to the mindset of the Israeli public."

Brave German Woman's Stand Comes with Hefty Price

By Dale Hurd

CBN News Sr. Reporter

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

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FRANKFURT, Germany -- American Christians are sometimes insulated from the high cost many believers around the world must pay for taking a stand for Christ. Heidi Mund, the woman known as the "brave German," is now experiencing this firsthand.

In 2013, when a Muslim imam was giving the Islamic call to prayer inside a historic German church, Mund stood up and proclaimed that"Jesus Christ is Lord of Germany."  

"I break this curse!" she yelled, warning the audience that what was happening was a lie. 

The YouTube video and our CBN News story were seen by millions, and soon Mund became known around the world.  

Although she does not want the credit, some believe what Mund did broke a curse over Germany, setting the stage for the massive street demonstrations against Islamization the following year by the citizens group Pegida.

"Some people tell me, 'Did you know you broke the curse over Germany?'" she said.

A Heavy Price

But today, Mund is paying a heavy price. Police patrols keep watch outside her home, and a far-Left radical group leafleted her neighborhood, telling residents they live next to a racist and threatening her with violence.

When she and her husband Matthias tried to start a Frankfurt chapter of Pegida, she came under intense attack in the media, and Mathias was fired from his job.

A local association of pastors distanced themselves from her, asking if Jesus would join a group like Pegida. 

And in a nation like Germany where loving your country and flag-waving patriotism is viewed with suspicion, Internet videos mock her as a Nazi.

What none of these people probably saw was what CBN News witnessed on a chilly street in downtown Frankfurt last year, where this alleged "Nazi" was setting up for her street ministry to give away Christian DVDs to anyone who would take them, but especially to Muslims.

"God uses me very often for Muslims," she told us. "It's our commission to give them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Only Jesus can fill their hearts, the lack and the hole in their hearts. Only He can."

"And if they meet Jesus, accept Jesus in their lives as their savior and their Lord, the Holy Spirit will change them and they will not be our enemies anymore," she said.

But Mund has had to stop her street ministry and now lives in semi-isolation, going outside only when she has to. With no income, the Munds may lose their home.

Waiting on the Lord

She has since left Pegida, a group the German media portrays as Nazis but that Mund says is mostly ordinary people simply concerned about their nation:

"They say, 'Oh, we have the Nazis, we have the Nazis' and everywhere in the newspapers you can read about the Nazis, the Nazis, the Nazis," she said. "But this is like a balloon of lies."

"There are some, of course," she added. "But I believe most of them are honest and they really have this aim to protect Germany from this brutal ideology [radical Islam]."

Now she is waiting on the Lord and trusting God to see her through a very difficult period. 

"It could push us down and we could be depressed or discouraged, but Jesus is always Lord," she said. "Just hold on and walk in His ways."

Jewish Leader: US-Israel Row Inciting Anti-Semitism

CBNNews.com

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

The latest tensions between the Obama administration and Israel are contributing to a rise in global anti-Semitism, World Jewish Congress President Ronald Lauder warned Tuesday.

In remarks before the House subcommittee overseeing global human rights issues, Lauder said when people around the world see "the best friend of Israel is having problems with them," it provokes negative attitudes toward Jews.

Lauder also warned that unless the United States acts decisively to defeat Islamic terrorism in the Middle East and Africa, "the flame of radical Islam could stretch across all of Europe as well."

"European leaders have stepped up and strongly condemned these attacks on Jews and the rise of anti-Semitism," Lauder said. "The United States must lead."

Lauder also criticized the absence of U.S. leaders at the anti-terror march in Paris following the attacks on the offices of the Charlie Hebdomagazine and a kosher supermarket in the city's suburbs last January.

"Many of the leaders in Europe linked arms in solidarity in the very front row, but there was not one U.S. representative with them in the front row," Lauder said. "I believe that sent a very negative message around the world."

Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who chairs the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations, told participants, "For the first time since the Holocaust, the physical security of Jewish communities in Europe has become a top-level concern. This is the horrifying state of affairs."

Are You Worried That You're Going to Miss God's Plan?

 3/24/2015 CHRISTY FITZWATER    charisma magazine  SPIRITLED WOMAN

"I was just talking to a young woman who is feeling like she has ever so many things she wants to do for the Lord, but her life doesn't seem to be going anywhere." (StockFreeImages.com)

After stopping at my daughter and son-in-law's apartment in Bozeman, the halfway point on my way to visit my mom in Wyoming, I packed up my suitcase in the morning and pulled it over snow-covered sidewalks to my car.

Driving out of the parking lot, I took the detour around a construction site on the MSU campus.

There wasn't much constructed yet, except a cement block stairwell.

I had watched construction like this in Kalispell months before. They were building a large hotel, and I drove by it often because it is close to Target.

I have the weirdest anxiety about this stairwell thing.

Out of the middle of a barren piece of earth, the men put up these blocks, and I can see they're working on other parts of the building.

What if they don't meet up? I want to yell at them.

What if they've built that sturdy cement tower, but when they continue on with the other parts of the building and get to the joining place they realize they were six inches off in the wrong direction.

My anxiety may stem from the fact that I have never measured anything, much to my father's chagrin.

That's why we have eyeballs, I say.

If you eyeball a picture and it's a little off center, it's not that big of a deal to hammer another nail and fix it. Well, maybe another inch this way. Nothing a bucket of drywall mud can't cover up if I ever decide to move that picture.

I can't imagine being so confident in my detailed measurements that I could build one part of a building over here and another part over there and not even lose sleep that they're going to line up when they get close together.

This brings Ephesians 2:10 to mind:

For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.

Do you see how God made this stairwell of good works out ahead of us, and then He's creating us way back over here. And the plan is that we, the created, will meet up with the good works. God is that good at what he does. That precise.

But it's easy to feel anxious like I do when I see that construction site.

What if I don't meet up with what God wants me to do?

Well, that's how lazy eyeballers think who refuse to measure, make a mess of everything and hope to cover it up later.

I was just talking to a young woman who is feeling like she has ever so many things she wants to do for the Lord, but her life doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

This is for you, sister, and for anyone else who's in the construction phase of things.

We can trust the Master Builder.

He has actually measured and planned where our lives are going.

Phew.

Christy Fitzwater is the author of A Study of Psalm 25: Seven Actions to Take When Life Gets Hard. She is a blogger, pastor's wife and mom of two teenagers and resides in Montana. Visit christyfitzwater.com for more information about her ministry.

Prophecy: A Tsunami of Perversion Will Rise - JENNIFER LECLAIRE

Prophecy: A Tsunami of Perversion Will Rise

3/24/2015 JENNIFER LECLAIRE  charisma magazine

A symbolic tsunami of major proportions is about to hit this country. (Flickr)

Some months ago—before the megachurch pastors starting to embrace practicing homosexuals into leadership and before the Presbyterian Church USA rewrote its constitution to define marriage as "between two people," the Holy Spirit gave me a disturbing word about the perversion we're about to see.

Notice I said "about to see." We're seeing the rapid rise of perversion even now but I believe this is just the beginning. We'll see the rise of false prophets who deceive many because, Jesus said, of the increase of wickedness (see Matt. 24:12). The mystery of lawlessness was working in Paul's day (see 2 Thess. 2:7) and that mystery is revealing the depth of its wicked plot in our day.

When I shared the prophetic word below with my intercessors, it troubled them. I understand why. It troubled me also. I decided to hold it back and pray it through but the Holy Spirit recently reminded me of these words again. These words should not breed fear but should open our eyes to what's coming, and what, in fact, is already beginning to manifest right before our eyes. Here is the word:

Calling Evil Good and Good Evil

"A tsunami of perversion and all manner of wicked sin is headed toward this nation. You've only yet seen the rumblings of what the enemy has planned. For many in your nation have called good evil and called evil good. Many in this nation have not believed you will reap what you sow.

"You have sown iniquity—for decades—and you have taken the hand of perversion. You have walked in step with abominations rather than resisting the temptations to deny my Word and my Son. The perversion in this land will increase and increase and increase.

"There will come a day when morality is no longer merely relative but is persecuted. There will come a day when evil is considered good and good is considered evil. When that day comes, those who are hidden in the shadow of My wings will be insulated from the abominations around them.

"I will raise up the likes of Abraham and Moses to deliver the righteous out of the hand of the wicked in that day. I will shield those who run into my Name. But no longer look and no longer think that you will turn the tide by your prayers alone. These things must be so. I warn you now to fear not, but to ready your hearts. Buy your oil. Be ready for My coming."

It's Not Just Sexual Perversion

Yes, we've seen the rumblings of this rising perversion but I believe it's going to grow darker still. When you think of perversion you probably immediately think of sexual perversion—and I believe that's part of it. The Bible has plenty to say about sexual perversion in Romans 1:21-28 alone and we're seeing that passage playing out right now.

But sexual immorality—polygamy, homosexuality, adultery, fornication and legal bestiality that I've so often addressed—is not the only kind of perversion. There's perversion of laws, perversion of justice, perversion of speech, perversion of freedom—and most importantly, perversion of God's Word. Apostasy is rising. The Great Falling Away is underway.

After praying over this and letting it sit for some months, it became clear to me that the root of this tsunami of perversion is actually the perversion of God's Word itself. You've seen a trickle of this, but it's about to break out like a flood. Again, we're seeing prominent pastors and entire denominations perverting God's Word, twisting it to defend and justify perversion itself and suggesting the rest of us are legalistic or unenlightened about the truth. It may have started with the gay marriage doctrine but it won't end there.

We need to redeem the time, because the days are evil (see Eph. 5:16). We need to make an appeal to heaven for spiritual awakening. I believe the people who walk in darkness can see a great light (see Is. 9:2) if we refuse to stop contending for revival.

Our Only Hope Is a Great Awakening

Back in 2007, the Lord told me things in this nation would grow darker before His light shined brightly again. I believe things are on a course to grow very dark very rapidly. But I also believe in the power of prayer and faith-inspired action. I also believe in the power of preaching the gospel. I also believe God wants to bring transforming revival—a Third Great Awakening—to this nation.

It's up to us to stand in the gap. It's up to us to make up the hedge. It's up to us to weep between the porch and the altar. It's up to us to pray without ceasing. It's up to us to decree and declare God's will on the earth. It's up to us to speak the truth in love. It's up to us to take the gospel to our city. Yes, I believe it will grow darker and the perversion will rise, but I believe the glory of the Lord will rise and shine upon us again if we are faithful to obey His commands:

"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For the darkness shall cover the earth and deep darkness the peoples; but the Lord shall rise upon you, and His glory shall be seen upon you. The nations shall come to your light and kings to the brightness of your rising" (Is. 60:1-3). Amen.

Want to know more about the next great move of God? Click here to see Jennifer LeClaire's new book, featuring Dutch Sheets, Reinhard Bonnke, Jonathan Cahn, Billy Graham and others.

Jennifer LeClaire is senior editor of Charisma. She is also director of Awakening House of Prayer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and author of several books, including The Next Great Move of God: An Appeal to Heaven for Spiritual Awakening, Mornings With the Holy Spirit, Listening Daily to the Still Small Voice of God, The Making of a Prophet and Satan's Deadly Trio: Defeating the Deceptions of Jezebel, Religion and Witchcraft. You can visit her website here. You can also join Jennifer on Facebook or follow her on Twitter.

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Did you like this article? You'll enjoy Jonathan Cahn's book, The Mystery of the Shemitah