August 12, 2011
The Background
and
Escalation of Lawlessness
T
o
try and grasp the need for an understanding of the overall and
complete ministry of the Apostle and the Elijah of the end-time, it
is necessary at this point for us to take a look at this country and
its moral state at the time this Work began through Jesus Christ’s
use of Mr. Armstrong in 1934, to see where it had escalated to at the
time of his death in 1986, and beyond!
There are two major reasons as to why this is important:
It marked the real beginning of the end-time.
Due to this beginning of the end-time that would cover more than 75 years before the return of Jesus Christ, it was necessary for the end-time Elijah to begin His ministry. This was prophesied by both the prophet Malachi, and Jesus Christ Himself, to match the years of the beginning of his ministry with the real beginning slide into the utter depths of evil by the nations of Israel over the 52 years of his life-time mission (Malachi 4:4-6; Matthew 17:11).
Though the downward slide into the depths of sin has multiplied greatly since the year of his death in 1986, there was enough of the same evils being practiced at that time to picture to him where Israel and the world were heading. He warned of its consequences right up to the time of his last telecast!
When reading his writings and listening to his radio and telecasts, it becomes easy to realize they are appropriate now than they were then.
Mr. Armstrong had to Die
Due to his understanding and preaching about it over many years, it was not necessary for his ministry to continue as other prophecies had to be fulfilled that had no place for him or any other true chief human shepherd to follow him for they would have stood in the way of their fulfillment.
The Falling Away from the Church of God
One such prophecy makes known there was to be a time of falling away of the overall membership of the Church (II Thessalonians 2:1-3). At the same time, there would be the scattering of the true membership of the Church, and with it, the testing and purifying of God’s people (Daniel 12:7, 10).
In order to fully understand the need for Jesus Christ to send this man of the end-time, it will be necessary to cover a lot of material in this area.
This is very important as there is a need to really grasp the dramatic increase in the immoral slide of Israel into such total depravity of sin from the beginning of his mission in 1934 to where we now find ourselves in this present century!
Wherever one cares to look this immoral slide can be witnessed any and everywhere! Those who are of an older age should realize the tremendous difference from just the 1940s! This should be alarming to everyone to see what has happened over just these past few years while giving cause for great concern!
The Grave Need for the Elijah
When considering this incredulous change over the course of just a few short years, one should begin to understand why it was necessary that Jesus Christ send the Elijah to Israel with the mission of turning a sufficient number of people back to Him. And this was accomplished!
Had this not taken place this earth would have experienced total destruction; and all human life would have perished with it!
This is made known by God’s prophet: “. . . lest I come and strike the earth with a curse” (Hebrew meaning, ‘utter destruction’, Malachi 4:6).
Can our minds grasp this sobering fact?
Sadly, the younger generation think what they now see is how it has always been! They are not real students of history; therefore they have no real concept of the changes going on all around them or of the significance of what they are seeing! Evils so terrible and degrading they and all of the nations of Israel are soon to be engulfed by the terrible Great Tribulation—similar to God destroying the pre-Flood world of Noah!
The Importance of Understanding
As God's true people there is great need of being very vigilant and keep our bearings! Otherwise, we can come to be like the proverbial frog in the pan of water with the temperature being turned up ever so slowly that the frog does not realize the difference until it is too late and is boiled to death.
I
n
the same manner society has been so methodically acclimated to the
evils over the past years they think of this modern day society as
normal! Soon, like the frog, it will come to be too late to survive
as a nation.
Over the past few decades the evil of today's civilization has so subtly and slowly developed in this country – and other nations of Israel, that it is no longer being viewed as it really is by virtually anyone!
E
ven
religion for the most part can be compared to that of the proverbial
ostrich who buries its head in the sand, not wanting to seriously
think about the seriousness of the evil being practiced and its
consequences!
As the result the evil has now so completely saturated the societies of the nations of Israel there no longer seems to be any hope left for them!
In reality we may have reached the point where God tells us to no longer pray for His chosen people, Israel (Jeremiah 7:16; 11:14; 14:11).
The House of Joseph Leading the Way
S
adly,
the House of Joseph leads the other nations of Israel and the world
down the primrose path to total
lawlessness.
When studying the history of the United States from 1934 to 1986, it becomes much easier to see this span of time was the real beginning of the eradication of the standards of godly conduct!
Since 1986 society has replaced those standards of godly conduct with its own concept of right and wrong – a new low morality. In so doing they have moved the laws of God behind their back! Habakkuk 1:4; Hosea 8:12.
Looking back over those years it can be seen that the real beginning of the breakdown in society began during World War II! After the war was over in 1945 a more noticeable downward plunge into the evils by society began and accelerated ever so slightly. It picked up speed over the next two decades, 1950s and the 1960s!
From there the evils have increased very rapidly due to many factors in this country, some of which have been already mentioned; while others will be touched on in the following chapters of this book.
The Entrance of Nuclear Bombs
Chapter one of these writings made known the mid-forties saw the development of the atom bomb that was used to bring to a close the war with Japan after dropping two of them on two of their large cities.
Just a few short years later came the development of the bomb of all bombs – the hydrogen bomb— a bomb that is so awesome in destructive power as to defy human imagination (please review chapter one)!
As the result of the development of these BIG BOMBS, many scientists and leaders expressed their fear that mankind had entered the time of the end! It would be just a matter of time, as noted earlier in these writings!
“The Day After,” a movie made a few years ago, shows in graphic detail the aftermath of an enemy nation dropping nuclear bombs on this country. It is highly recommended that one see the video of this movie to grasp the reality of what is prophesied to take place before much longer.
The awesome explosive power of the nuclear bombs has made it possible for whole cities to be leveled just as was Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Japan in 1945. When we consider the potential that now exists with the H-bombs blasting all life from off this planet, as made known in the first chapter of this writing, it is almost incomprehensible to realize the fragility of human life on planet earth could be vaporized over night!
People were terribly frightened at the beginning of the nuclear age but it did not last! Over the years that followed it appears most people have become so conditioned to living on the brink of cosmoscide they probably never give any real thought to it any longer.
It seems the human mind can come to be conditioned to almost anything over time. Perhaps this largely explains why people have come to be so lethargic and complacent by the terrible things going on in society they have come to the point of the acceptance of it without any real effective outcry against the evils.
This also explains why God will not spare anyone involved in this system from His corrective punishment He will soon bring on the House of Israel. And when it comes, people will wonder why!
A Terrifying Warning of the End
With the possession of those powerful bombs
the word could be given to use them at any time by s
ome
mad-man at the head of any government! And
it very probably would have already occurred except for the
intervention of the Creator God!
Consider the head-on clash of Premier Krushchev and President Kennedy over Russia sending ships with missiles and nuclear warheads to Cuba in 1962 – just a few short years ago! Most people do not realize how perilously close we came to nuclear warfare with Russia!
1
962 Cuban
missile crisis
On the brink of nuclear war ON THE 22 of October 1962
the president of the United States, John F Kennedy, made a speech to
the nation. Informing everyone of the build up of offensive nuclear
weapons (supplied by the Soviet Union) in Cuba, he announced a blockade
of ships blockade of ships carrying military equipment to Cuba. He
demanded the Soviet Union withdraw these weapons and "to move the world back from the abyss of destruction."
There were frantic discussions once it was established that these weapons were nuclear and with an intermediate range could reach many key US cities.
A US intelligence document of the time states the following:- Analysis of SAM (Surface to Air Missile) sites: ". . . accepted range of SS-4 missile: includes - Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St Louis, Oklahoma City, Fort Worth-Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Mexico City, all the capitals of the Central American nations, the Panama Canal and the oil fields in Maricaibo, Venezuela. The presence of operational SS-4 missiles in this location would give the Soviets a great military asset."
Thankfully, Jesus Christ intervened then and continues to do at critical times to keep it from taking place. And He will continue doing so UNTIL it fits within His time-table! And that time is rapidly coming upon the nations of Israel.
This close call should have been sufficient cause for people to wake up and repent of their sinful ways and really begin to plead with God for His intervention to prevent those bombs from ever being used by madmen!
Another writer reveals the closeness of a nuclear war between Pakistan and India in 2002:
“EARLIER THIS year, 2002, Pakistan and
India came to the brink of war over their occupation of Kashmir. The
possibility of nuclear weapons being used, killing millions, loomed
large. Comparisons were made with the 'Cuban missile crisis' of 40
years ago. JANE JAMES looks at what happened in October 1962 and how
close the United States a
nd the Soviet Union then came to a nuclear war.”
It seems people forget so quickly and move on as if nothing could happen that could cost them their lives.
The same is true with what took place on September 11, 2001, when terrorists flew planes into the twin towers and the Pentagon. Almost 3,000 people perished that day, never realizing when they boarded the passenger planes there would be no going home again in this life.
People were so emotionally moved at that moment in time they seemed to come together as a nation; but it did not last. After a very short time they moved on with their lives, putting this terrible time behind them, and life continued as before!
Failure to face Reality
It would appear that leaders and people of today hardly ever give a thought they could perish at any time! No real fear is ever mentioned for the most part because it has not happened! And it appears that regardless of any national crisis that will yet take place in the future, as intended wakeup calls from Jesus Christ, people will continue to sleep until it becomes too late!
To illustrate this apathy, there was an article in the Los Angeles Times, June 13, 2006, that stated scientists are racing once again, as they did in the 1940s, to rebuild an aging nuclear stockpile:
“Scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory are locked in an intense competition with rivals at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory in the Bay area to design the nation's first nuclear bomb in two decades.”
We can only imagine what other nations are doing with their nuclear arsenals.
Times have changed dramatically from just a few short years ago.
A Personal Example
While serving in the army in Germany during World War II, during front line combat with the German army, virtually all of us thought seriously about God and even prayed to Him. We knew our lives were on the line and we could be shot and killed at any time for we had seen it happen to others who were serving with us.
Someone mentioned that the law of averages would catch up with us sooner or later and we would also be shot and possibly killed. I prayed and from what I observed other soldiers who were also religiously inclined undoubtedly prayed as well. I even heard a religious song being sung, hummed, or whistled in between times of actual combat!
Ever-Present Dangers
In this day and age few even bother to seriously consider the real and ever present danger that threatens all of mankind; let alone praying their hearts out that God would keep what is soon to take place from ever happening!
In addition to nuclear war, there is the continued threat from suicidal terrorists who want to destroy the nations of Israel.
There is also the very high crime rate along with other possible life-threatening dangers that confronts virtually everyone wherever they live! The News Media continually makes known that almost every day men and women are being found dead from the violent acts of others.
It is sad that society for the most part moves on without any serious consideration of the Great God in heaven above who could and would protect them if they were to acknowledge Him as the true lawgiver and cease from transgressing His holy righteous laws! James 4:12.
Society should wake up to the fact the times in which we now live are far more dangerous to human life than in either of the two World Wars in this past century, or at any time in the history of mankind!
Sadly, there is no real evidence of it in society even though there are a few commentators, talk show hosts and writers who continue to warn of the real dangers we are facing as a nation and world.
Their voices and writings go unheard and unheeded.
To help us get an overall picture of how lawlessness began escalating more rapidly to where society finds itself today we will take a look at the 1950s.
The 1950s
The real escalation of lawlessness was witnessed more fully in the 1950s and in a manner that would have been shocking to earlier generations had not society already been pre-conditioned to it.
It was during those years that a very major breakdown began in family traditions in this country which sent it spiraling downward along with the other nations of Israel! And, as it has been truthfully said, "As goes the family also goes the world!" This is very plain in view of where the family is today!
Divorce was little heard of before war broke
out in Europe in 1
939! However during the years that followed the end of the
war in 1945 the breakup of families began to accelerate.
Largely this was due to wives leaving the home to work in the factories to help out with the war effort. With both husbands and wives working away from the home they had very little family time together. Some of them even worked on different shifts.
In many situations wives were spending more time on the job with other unmarried and married men than they were with their husbands, and visa-versa! This came to be a real problem with too many husbands and wives.
From that time to now there has been rampant divorce. And the laws have come to be so liberal a divorce can be obtained for practically any reason. Statistics reveal the percentage for divorce is about 50 percent.
The percentage would be even greater if it were not for people now living together without the bond of marriage. In this kind of relationship there are no legal ties; and one or the other can walk away any time. Though there is no known accurate percentage rate for this kind of breakup one can be sure it is higher than believed!
Monday, May. 25, 2009
TIME Everything but the Ring
By Lisa Selin Davis
“. . . More than 5 million unmarried couples cohabit in the U.S., nearly eight times the number in 1970, and a record-breaking 40% of babies born in 2007 had unmarried parents (that's up 25% from 2002). Sure, there are plenty of baby-daddies in the Levi Johnston vein, i.e., young and accidental. But nonmarital births have increased the most among women ages 25 to 39, doubling since 1980, thanks in part to a small but growing demographic a sociologist has dubbed committed unmarrieds (CUs). These are the happily unwed--think Brad and Angelina, Oprah and Stedman, Goldie and Kurt--whose commitment to their partners is as strong as their stance against marriage. . . .
Alternatives to Natural Sexual Relationships
About the same time there were men and women who began coming out into the open about their alternatives to natural sex! Over time this became a rapid move toward the permissiveness of deviant sexual relationships, even to the bizarre!
These kinds of sexual relationships have now reached the point that marriage, as God intended it between men and women, is rapidly moving to something radically different! Family relationships as we have known them are in real danger of becoming extinct!
Just during the past few years we have been shocked to learn that there are men in the Congress of the United States of America who are known homosexuals and the numbers have grown since the last election (2008). There are also the same kinds of men to be found in the highest offices in this country on the state and national level.
In addition, we were shocked to learn that some of the leading male and female movie stars are involved in homosexuality and lesbianism! There was great disappointment in learning of their deviant sexual preferences for they were looked up to as being above such things.
From what can be read many producers of movies today are also of these kinds of people. With this in mind it is easily understood why the movies portray such people in a very favorable light!
Same Sex Marriages
Since so many of these men and women are celebrities, and others occupying some of the highest offices – who have openly made known their sexual preferences – has led to the majority of the populace accepting what they do as being normal!
Sadly, the whole of society has accepted them as they are without any real dissent! The alternatives to natural sex have now accelerated to the point that many of these same people have begun entering into marriage legally with one another in parts of this country and in other nations of Israel!
The United Kingdom
In this context it is important to reemphasize that which was already noted in the previous chapter from the following news article that makes known the United Kingdom is very much favorably involved with these people in all levels of their society due to the acceptance by the highest offices in that country!
As already noted the enormity of this terrible problem is evident from one of England's leading Newspapers, recounting the opening of Parliament in November 2003, with the speech by the Queen, who made some blush in shame that she would say the things she did.
Perhaps it is only tacit agreement on her part but with her being the Queen of the United Kingdom what she says encourages her subjects to accept the perverted way of the sodomite and lesbian way of life as defined by the holy Bible.
Consider once again the following quotes regarding the new thinking and agreement with it:
Daily Mail, November 26, 2003:
“The word ‘marriage’ is to be purged - in the cause for equality for homosexuals. References to it will be removed from Government records and documents. The institution of marriage will effectively be swept aside from almost every role of the state - including benefits, taxation and immigration law. It could even be wiped from future state records, statistics and censuses. The ban will be brought in with the ‘gay marriage’ laws to be announced in the Queen’s speech today.
“Instead of asking for ‘marital status’ - official forms will refer to ‘civil status’ to include both married couples and gays. The Department of Trade and Industry, which has devised the laws, said marriage would be dropped at every opportunity from state documents.”
The Stench of Sin
This is enough to make decent people hang their heads in embarrassment and shame for these two great nations! Nations whose history reflects the blessings from God are now witnessing those blessings being turned into curses from Him because of the stench of their abominable sins.
Homosexual "Marriages" in the United Kingdom
A
s
The Telegraph reported on December 22, 2005,
"The most sweeping social reform for 40 years came to fruition
yesterday when nearly 700 couples, including Sir Elton John and David
Furnish, celebrated England's first gay 'weddings.' [Elton John
was knighted by the Queen some little time ago and given a
favorable and recognized place in the recent wedding of Prince
William and his bride Kate Middleton.]
“To the delight of gay rights campaigners and the dismay of many Church leaders, homosexual couples 'tied the knot' in ceremonies that were hardly distinguishable from civil marriages.
“
The
sense of history was heightened by Tony Blair, who welcomed the new
civil partnerships as 'a modern, progressive step' of which he was
proud. . . .
"
But
hard-line Christian campaigners described the 'weddings' as 'a sham
and an affront to almighty God'. Stephen Green, the national director
of Christian Voice, said: 'Ordinary people will be revolted by the
sight of these couples embracing and the recognition in our law of
what the Bible describes as an abomination and 'vile affection' will
bring judgment on our land from the same Almighty God who
destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.'"
In a related article of the Evening Standard, which was published on December 19, it was reported that prior to Sir Elton John's wedding, a video message from former president Bill Clinton was played at a cabaret party. In the message, Mr. Clinton congratulated Elton John and David Furnish, stating, "If there were more people like Elton, the world would be a better place."
This is an absolute affront to the Almighty God!!!
Because of the acceptance of their behavior by society virtually all of them have come out of the closet and openly and blatantly make known their deviant lifestyle, just as prophecy makes known they would do in our time:
“The look on their countenance witnesses against them, and they DECLARE their sin as Sodom; they do NOT hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves” (Isaiah 3:9).
If anything, Britain has been in the leading role of what we are now finding in the law-making bodies of the United States.
It should be understood that the slide of marriage into oblivion in England is due to the very large and powerful numbers of the homosexual and lesbian population who have clout and influence in the highest places. They affect change through their ballots and a complicit news media.
Tragically, there is no shame and embarrassment shown by these people any longer for what they practice, just as one of God’s prophets wrote that it would be:
“Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed; nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time I will punish them, they shall be cast down,” says the Lord (Jeremiah 6:15; 8:12).
It is so very sad that multiple millions of people in America and the United Kingdom have embraced all sorts of beliefs and behaviors in our day that would have horrified their parents' generation.
The Door Opening Wider in Canada
As it also has been noted, the door has also opened very wide both socially and legally for this kind of behavior in Canada! One can now involve his or herself in their chosen sex life in whatever way imaginable without any recriminations from the law in this country or the other nations of Israel.
F
or
example, the news of fairly recent date has made known the lawmakers
in Canada approved group sex clubs. This makes possible group sexual
relationships, men with men, women with women, and men with women.
This includes sexual relationships with girls as young as age 14.
Please note this in the following news article:
Canada a New Haven for Pedophiles?
The WorldNetDaily, December 27, 2005, made known that Canada's Supreme Court has given green light to sex clubs, involving boys and girls as young as 14, and has thereby opened Pandora's Box for pedophiles. The article explained:
"The Canadian Supreme Court ruling that redefined obscenity for that nation and legalized group-sex clubs, combined with Canada's unusually low age of consent –14 – will result in an influx of pedophiles to America's neighbor to the north, contends a former consultant to the U.S. Justice Department . . . [Judith] Reisman, [word-renowned scholar and author] . . . says the court's decision sends a clear message to pedophiles: 'You don't have to go to Asia anymore. Pedophiles can have the blond, blue-eyed kids in Canada, too'. . . The liberalization of the Canadian courts, the author contends, shows 'that pedophiles or politicians who refuse to prosecute these types of crimes are in power more than ever in Canada.'"
Ontario Premier: Catholic schools have no choice but to accept gay clubs
Mon Jul 04, 2011 14:32 EST
Comments (42)
Tags: catholic, dalton mcguinty, equity, ontario
O
ntario
Premier Dalton McGuinty
TORONTO, Ontario, July 4, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – All of Ontario’s publicly-funded high schools, Catholic or public, must allow homosexual clubs if students want them, Premier Dalton McGuinty insisted Friday. He also admitted that his government is aiming at changing “attitudes” on homosexuality, a process he says “should begin in the home.”
“I am proud that effective this September, high school students who want their school to have a student support group for LGBT students will have one,” said McGuinty in a statement read by homosexual Toronto Centre MPP Glen Murray at Pride Toronto’s international marshals’ reception. “This is not a matter of choice for school boards or principals. If students want it, they will have it.”
Referencing the backlash against the recent push for gay-straight alliances in the Catholic schools, McGuinty noted that homosexual “support groups” have been “controversial” in some schools. “We need to move beyond that,” he said.
The Premier also insisted his government is not satisfied with merely enshrining acceptance of homosexuality in law. “It’s one thing … to change a law, but it’s quite another to change an attitude,” he said. “Attitudes are shaped by our life experiences and our understanding of the world.”
“That should begin in the home and extend deep into our communities, including our schools,” he added. ...”
Gay Is the New Normal
Jonathan Rauch Contributing editor, The Atlantic
“Perhaps this had to happen: the straight-rights movement is here. No, it does not call itself that. (Yet.) But opponents of same-sex marriage, and others who are unfriendly to the gay-rights movement, have adopted the posture of a victim group. They are, it seems ... an oppressed majority.
The backstory is this: Until recently, and for as long as pollsters at Gallup have thought to ask, a clear majority of Americans regarded homosexual relations as morally wrong. The entire superstructure of anti-gay sentiment and policy stood upon that foundation of opprobrium. In 2008, however, the lines crossed, with as many Americans (48 percent) telling Gallup that gay and lesbian relations are “morally acceptable” as said they are “morally wrong.” And in 2010, for the first time, an outright majority, 52 percent, called homosexuality morally acceptable, with only 43 percent condemning it. From here, the level of opprobrium is likely only to shrink.
This change is a watershed in gay-straight relations, and it brings a disorienting political role reversal. It is the condemnation of homosexuality, rather than homosexuality itself, that will be increasingly stigmatized as morally deviant. And it is the opponents of gay equality who will insist they are the oppressed group, the true victims of civil-rights violations. Indeed, they have already developed, and are vigorously marketing, a “gay bullies” narrative:
Confronted with a poll showing that a majority of
Americans support gay marriage, Maggie Gallagher, a leading
gay-marriage opponent, responds that the poll reflects not true
public sentiment, but gay activists’ success at “intimidating
and silencing.”
Describing a dispute involving a bakery
that refused to make rainbow-colored cupcakes for a pro-gay student
group, David E. Smith, the executive director of the Illinois Family
Institute, writes: “Homosexual bullies and their heterosexual
accomplices are now speciously attempting to turn this into an issue
of ‘discrimination.’”
Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research
Council, says that if California’s ban on gay marriage is not
upheld, “we’ll have gone, in one generation, from 1962,
when the Bible was banned in public schools, to religious beliefs
being banned in America.”
In a country where
evangelicals outnumber self-identified gays by at least 10 to 1, and
where anti-gay bullying is endemic in schools, and where same-sex
couples cannot marry in 45 states, and where countless gay Americans
cannot even get their foreign partners into the country, much less
into a hospital room—here, we’re supposed to believe that
gays are the bullies? Get used to it. This is the script of culture
wars to come.”
Jerry Brown Signs Law Requiring Gay History in Public Schools
John Hudson Jul 14, 2011 1,132 Views Comments (18)
C
alifornia
Governor Jerry Brown has signed into law a bill
requiring the teaching of gay accomplishments in lesson plans and
textbooks today, reports
the Los Angeles Times.
The legislation requires public schools to discuss the achievements
of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans in their social
studies curriculum. "It’s an important step forward for
the state of California,’’ said Gil Duran, a spokesman
for the governor."It revises existing law to make sure people
are not excluded from history books. History should reflect reality."
The bill passed through the Democratic-controlled Legislature last
week by a mostly party-line vote. "
The bill has drawn criticism from some churches and conservative groups that argue such instruction would expose students to a subject that some parents find objectionable," reports the Associated Press. It was sponsored by state Sen. Mark Leno who said "Denying LGBT people their rightful place in history gives our young people an inaccurate and incomplete view of the world around them." Meanwhile, Benjamin Lopez of the Traditional Values Coalition bristled, "We have failed at our core educational mission and yet we are now going to inject gay studies into the classrooms. Its absurd and offensive."
This is like a contagious disease, an addictive drug the whole House of Israel! It is no wonder that Scripture defines them in the latter days as Sodom and Gomorrah – while making known the whole head (governing leadership) is sick (Isaiah 1:5-6, 10)
Young Children Taught Acceptance in the School System
From the news articles we see that homosexuality has become so widespread and accepted by society that it is now legally taught in the American school system to children as young as 5 years of age as an acceptable alternative lifestyle.
T
he
almost total disintegration of traditional sexual mores has brought
these young children to an epidemic of sex among 11-, 12-, 13- and
14-year-olds in our nation's middle schools.
In the area where we live the young people who profess to be homosexual or lesbian had their own prom recently without any public outcry by anyone. Pictures of their dancing together were prominently displayed in the local newspaper.
Penalties are Being Exacted
V
ery
few people even care to know the facts as to how many children have
herpes and Chlamydia and other sexually transmitted
diseases that they may never get over! One should realize there
is always a penalty to pay for the transgression of God's holy
and righteous laws.
Sooner or later the penalty is there! Medical doctors then try to cope with these diseases with their drugs. Sometimes they are successful to a point and other times they are not!
Sometime ago a news article said that having sex with another person is like playing Russian roulette. One out of five sex partners can cause a person to contract an incurable venereal disease.
Recently, WND Managing Editor David Kupelian, author of the controversial best-seller "The Marketing of Evil," gave a speech at Washington, D.C.'s prestigious Heritage Foundation. In his sometimes shocking address, Kupelian provided many illustrations from today's news of how – as the book's subtitle says – "radicals, elitists and pseudo-experts sell us corruption disguised as freedom.”
In his book he clearly makes known the beliefs and
behaviors that are destroying our society and this once great
country.
There are also other books written by well-known authors who voice their apprehensions regarding the very questionable continuance of our society as a nation based on the many accelerating problems confronting all of us as individuals and collectively as a nation!
Responsibility for the Evil
Who is really responsible for this sad state of licentiousness? The answer: the clergy and the majority of the voting public! The lawmakers are a reflection of their constituents; the people they serve in their states. If they do not vote according to the mood and desires of the people they serve, they would not be elected or re-elected by them.
God holds those who are responsible accountable for the lawless and deviant behavior that abounds today, along with those who do nothing about their elected officials who are doing nothing to halt such practices.
As the result of the expression of the will of the people, lawmakers continue to pass such bills, which are then upheld by the judiciary! These legalized man-made laws are contrary to the laws of God and the fallout from them is that this nation and other nations of Israel continue to move forward at an accelerating speed toward the Great Tribulation.
That will be a time too awful to contemplate! But it will also be a time of sobering and sorrowful reality!
The Receptive Door of Music and Lyrics
Music and lyrics have the incredible power to manipulate and capture the mood of people for good or bad. It excites the emotions. It is both a language and an art. It has very wide up and down ranges and can affect the emotions of virtually everyone.
E
XAMPLE:
David played his musical instrument in the presence of King Saul to
quiet the raving, irresponsible manic that he was at times:
I Samuel 16:14 “. . . a skilled player on the harp (Hebrew, kinnon, guitar – an instrument with many strings (Companion Bible). It was played in both a standing or sitting position (Experimental Commentary).
I Samuel 16:16, 23 “And it came to pass, that when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand, so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.”
Music can have powerful effects on virtually anyone: Depending on the purpose, music from school bands can generate excitement among the crowds during ballgames, create the desire to dance, stir the lust for illicit sexual relationships, and also bring people into a state of sadness and despair!
Music and song can captivate and enrapture the emotions and moods for good or bad in almost any circumstance. Together they can inspire, enlighten, thrill, and cause people to cry, as at funerals, or allow one to sit enthralled while basking in the lyrics of songs produced by the hands of skilled musicians.
It can also throw one into the depths of despair. It can stir up acts of violence and incite riot! It has a very powerful influence over every age group.
In summary, music can be used by God for good— or for bad by Satan. And when one listens to the music of today there seems to be no question of its source.
A Very Powerful Tool of Satan the Devil
One should realize that song accompanied by music is a very powerful tool of Satan the devil. He has used it from the beginning of the creation of mankind for deadly purposes through willing, receptive, and talented people.
And there seems to be no lack of such people who are seeking recognition and popularity through this medium! Their wrong kind of music can be heard on almost any radio station, as well as other outlets, all readily available for anyone to add to this licentious way of life! (It should be noted that those involved in this kind of music are unaware of Satan’s involvement as he is an invisible spirit being.)
Music and song, especially rap, has not only led to the removal of inhibitions and acceptance of wrongful sexual relationships, but also to a host of other problems, including the extreme of generating rebellion with the intent to rape and even kill others. One should also realize there is no tenderness, gentleness or love expressed in rap!
This bad music has been a definite contributing factor to the LUST for sex that has developed over the past few years to the extent that it can now be seen in simulated form on virtually any television channel.
No longer does one see modesty, embarrassment, or shame on screen, except in a few old black and white movies.
Those who are of an older age should think about the way men and women kissed in former years; in which a kiss expressed the tenderness of love for one another. Even passionate kisses were still on the lips of one another. This has changed to that of pure lust.
Accompanying this unlawful freedom from God's laws, one can now see on television almost any kind of perversion simulated between women with women and men with men! What they do on screen is so realistic that there is extremely little left to the imagination.
This freewheeling of lustful actions in all forms is so widely accepted that music is not really needed anymore as a lead-in to excite lust within people! Though it still plays a major role as a stimulus for lustful sex, it has fulfilled its purpose in bringing the baby-boomers and their offspring to where they now are in their destructive way of life.
Lucifer was Created with Great Genius in Music
The one who is really responsible for all the terrible things we witness today is Satan the devil. He was the invisible moving force who used Jubal, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and all those who followed them, as well as all those he has used in the field of music through the millennia to introduce and accelerate the evil that would follow in its wake.
When God created Lucifer, he was not only created with great wisdom and beauty, but he also was given great genius in music. He was the greatest of God's created angelic beings (Ezekiel 28:13, 15).
Tragically, over time Lucifer became an adversary to God by trying to topple Him from His throne in heaven (Isaiah 14:13; Ezekiel 28:12-17). His name was then changed to Satan the devil; and after mankind was created it became his avowed purpose to destroy all of humankind.
Among the other tools in his arsenal toward that end is his great ability in music, manipulating receptive and willing musicians to fulfill his purpose of destruction and death of all, just as he also uses deception and other devious ways to turn people away from God and His laws!
Examples of Destructive Intent with Ancient Israel
Skilled musicians undoubtedly were a definite contributing factor to the deaths of many thousands in Israel when they rose up to play while Moses was up on the mountain with God. Licentious dancing accompanied by the playing of musical instruments led to idolatry, adultery, and fornication (Exodus 32:4-6). Consider the following comments:
Smith's Bible Dictionary, Music, p. 589:
“
Of
the rising up to play at Mount Sinai as Mocking God:
"The triumphal hymn of Moses had unquestionably a religious character about it; but the employment of music in religious services, though idolatrous, is more distinctly marked in the festivities which attended the erection of the golden calf."
Herod. 2, 60, and 3, 27 Keil and Delitzsch, Vol. II, p. 222:
"And the people celebrated this feast with burnt-offerings and thank-offerings, with eating and drinking, i.e. with sacrificial meals and sports, or with loud rejoicing, shouting, antiphonal songs, and dances, in the same manner in which the Egyptians celebrated their feast of Apis.”
There was yet another time, while Israel was crossing the desert, when music undoubtedly played a destructive role. The virile young men of Israel were lured from their encampment by young, attractive Midianite women to an idolatrous feast in honor of their demon gods.
While feasting with music and song they began wildly dancing and then were willingly seduced by these women.
One prince of Israel was emboldened to take a princess of the Midianite women openly into his tent in the sight of Moses and the people. While their bodies were joined together in a sexual relationship, Phinehas, a priest of God, entered the tent and plunged his spear through both of them! That act by Phinehas stopped the plague God had brought on Israel for their idolatrous actions (Numbers 25:6-8).
Due to Israel’s idolatry with the Midianites’ demon gods and illicit relationship with these women, God had all the Israelite men killed who had involved themselves in this manner (24,000, Numbers 25:1-5, 9; Revelation 2:14).
Composers of Lyrics and Music
Although relatively good music sometimes can be found that can be uplifting and even inspiring, too often there are the men and women in all levels in society who Satan uses to compose and arrange the music into various destructive forms to try and destroy the human race!
Satan well realizes the emotional impact it has on the old and young alike, for good or bad, and he uses it to its full advantage (Ezekiel 28:13)!
This also includes the music and song that identifies the pagan religions of Astarte and the Baals in their congregational services and on their holidays, such as Christmas, Easter, New Years, Halloween, etc!
Music also identifies the different countries in their national anthems, such as America, Britain, Ireland, Mexico, Germany, China, etc.
It once identified the Church of God by the hymns we sang each Sabbath and on the Holy Days. Thankfully, they are still loved and sung yet today by God's true people.
Music also identified the World Tomorrow Telecast and Radio Broadcast by which God's late apostle carried the gospel and the Ezekiel warning message to the world.
Lessons in Music and Song from Recent and Past History
It is an established fact that history often repeats itself and hardly any leadership of any nation grasps this fact and profits from it.
As already made known, the real escalation of the abominable sins we are now seeing on virtually every level of society began in the 1950s— with the introduction of Elvis Presley to the impressionable restless youth.
I
ronically,
it began to accelerate with music and song that was
directed toward the young people and was wildly received by them.
This had a very definite detrimental impact on that generation of
young people for it led to their rebellion against social authority!
The fallout from it was witnessed throughout society and continues
today!
From the wings of the stage of musical entertainment entered a young man with his hip-swinging rock music. His unabashed simulated sexual style with his rock form of music and lyrics opened much wider the licentious way of life for illicit sexual relationships!
This young man was Elvis Presley! Recorded
history of that time reveals he was wildly and enthusiastically
received by the young people of that generation! His popularity grew
so greatly that even conservative television gave way to him and
sought his presence on their shows (one of which was the Ed
Sullivan show).
At first the cameras were not to go below his waist, but over some little time he began to have full-length exposure.
Though he has been dead for some years, he is yet idolized by millions and imitated by others. Their worship of him continues today! Many of his followers visit his home (Graceland) each year. Larry King did his show there in 2007 while interviewing Priscilla Presley.
Upon reflection one should be able to grasp the fact that the introduction of the wrong kind of music and song by Elvis Presley during the 1950s has also been a real contributing factor to virtually every movie produced by Hollywood; movies that are filled with sex and the vicious and brutal killings of men and women!
There have been studies of movies that portray blood and gore in such vivid detail that they have led some authorities to believe some copy what they see on the screen and carry it out in real life.
The same spirit being that influenced and used Adolph Hitler to kill better than 50,000,000 people during World War II is the very same who used Elvis Presley to begin the momentum of bringing this country to its immoral state today!
The Pied Piper
|
|
Though radical leaders in Hollywood and in other places played a very big part toward the downfall of this country, it was Elvis Presley who was the symbolical Pied Piper who spoke to them with his song and music of a new and licentious freedom!
They eagerly received what he sang and followed him into the forest to be symbolically dismembered and destroyed in ways that are yet to be realized. Many have already died due to hard drugs and ravenous social diseases!
The Powerful Influence of Music and Lyrics
Elvis Presley was very much like his predecessor, pre-flood Jubal! Jubal was also gifted in the area of music and song (Genesis 4:21), but used in a destructive manner.
Jubal opened the door of his generation with music and song; and he contributed in a major way to all of mankind perishing by drowning during the Flood with the sole exception of Noah and his immediate family (Genesis 6:18).
Satan used Jubal who had great talent and ability in the pre-flood world (Genesis 4:21), just as he did in our time with the one who led all the other rock bands that followed. Both became willing instruments and contributed greatly to his destructive purpose for mankind.
Scripture reveals that mankind in that pre-flood world had totally corrupted his way upon the earth and the intent of the human heart was continually bent on evil (Genesis 6:5). With great sadness and grief of heart God saw no alternative but to bring upon mankind a worldwide flood that would destroy all humanity with the lone exception of Noah and his immediate family!
The population of that time could have conservatively been numbered somewhere around two or three billion people!
Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the LORD said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping things and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD . . . Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations (pure in stock). Noah walked with God . . . The earth was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. So God looked upon the earth, and indeed it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth” (Genesis 6:5-13).
The loving God of all righteousness knew there was no choice but to destroy them for their own good. Within His time-table they will be raised up in a future resurrection and restored to human life. This will take place after the millennium in a new and different age that will be ruled by Jesus Christ that will be based on love and righteousness (Revelation 20:5):
Who was the music man with song and dance of that time who would lead the people to their destruction by the worldwide Flood?
Jubal the Original Pied Piper
The song and music man during that time was named Jubal! He was the pied piper Satan used in that pre-flood world! He was also a descendant of Cain who had murdered Abel, his brother.
Jubal's name means 'joyful'; however, the kind of music he developed was only joyful to the wrong element of people, for it was anything but good music!
This man was inspired by Satan to begin the destruction of the society of the pre-flood world by his cultivation of music that brought about the kind of sound, accompanied by lyrics, that people would wildly welcome and demand – just as the younger generation did with Elvis Presley in our time (Genesis 4:21; 6:1-17; 7:19-24; Luke 17:26-27).
Though Jubal was the developer of music of that time, this does not mean there had been no music before him any more than that of Elvis Presley. However, they became the fathers of that which was to follow them:
And Adah bore Jabal . . . His brother’s name was Jubal. He was THE FATHER of all those who play the harp and flute (Genesis 4:20-21).
Jubal perverted music just as did Elvis Presley. He was a tool of Satan the devil and being influenced by him developed a kind of music that had a stirring beat and rhythm that excited the impulses and had a dominating influence on society.
Led and used by Satan, Jubal's music SET THE PATTERN for all music in his time, and then it reappeared in this end-time for the same destructive purpose.
What kind of music was it? The word ‘handle’ (KJV), in Genesis 4:21 means “to use unwarrantably” or to “profane” (see number 8610 in the Hebrew Dictionary of Strong’s Concordance.) It also means to manipulate, i. e. to seize; chiefly to capture. And that is what music does for bad or for good. It manipulates and captures! Its powerful influence for good or bad has been greatly underestimated!
Jubal's music was the kind that also wandered
aimlessly and would leave people without morals, principle, or
character.
In this context it should be pointed out that music, as we know it, did not come into vogue until after 1500 A. D. This is when all our modern musical instruments, which are highly complex, were invented and perfected.
Jubal, however, did bring into use the two basic kinds of instruments – those which are plucked and those which are struck in order to make the sound. It went well with his nomadic way of life - it wandered purposely and never really came to rest anywhere.
With this in mind, those of us who are older can look back at the kind of music that began developing with the Big Band era that became popular during the Swing Era from the early 1930s until the late 1940s.The leading musical instruments began to wander away from the music as it was composed, with the listeners having no real understanding of where the trumpet, saxophone, coronet, etc., were going.
Though it may be hard for some to believe, Jubal's kind of music did play a major role in the drowning deaths of the billions of people in that pre-flood world.
This can be understood more fully when we consider the man who did the same in this generation.
Elvis Presley the Pied Piper of the End-time
Please note some of the comments from Elvis Presley’s Biography (internet):
“What made him unique was how he broke down musical barriers. Though he's hailed as "The King of Rock and Roll," that's a bit of misnomer. Maybe he should have been called the emancipator. Elvis represented the convergence in one small-town boy, born at the right time, in the right place, in the right environment and under the right circumstances, of all the musical currents of America's subcultures: black and white gospel, country and Western, and rhythm & blues. After 1956 popular music would never be the same again.
“
Or
as John
Lennon once solemnly pronounced: "Before
Elvis, there was nothing." Other rock-era contemporaries
looked to him as a source of divine inspiration . . . Bob Dylon once
said, “He is the deity supreme of rock ‘n’ roll
religion as it exists in today’s form.”
“Even a long-haired emissary, composer-conductor Leonard Bernstein, paid his tribute to the King.” Elvis Presley was the greatest cultural force in the 20th century. He changed everything – music, language, clothes – it's a whole new social revolution."
"The question of Elvis Presley remains as alive as the man himself is dead. He remains the specter of possibility – in rock 'n' roll, pop culture, America, modern life – and he remains the fact of ruin."
Satan, the Genius of Music, Used Elvis Presley
In brief: Satan led and used Elvis Presley to develop the kind of music and lyrics, along with his simulated sexual style, to accompany it that would attract the younger generation at that time. They were ripe and waiting for him; and after he came on stage they began to rapturously idolize him.
In the years to follow there was no return to the age of relative innocence they had known before he came on the scene.
The younger generation of that time came to have a major impact on virtually all aspects of society! They reveled in the crashing of barriers in moral values and their rebellious attitudes toward the older generation in the mid-fifties, and they carried this with them into the leadership of politics and other important areas of society.
It is important that we understand that Satan uses the same method in music as he does with doctrinal error. Both begin in a somewhat subtle manner and the bad is slowly mixed with the good! It is the kind of approach that leads people to drop their guard and open themselves up to and become receptive to the bad things that follow and then becomes a part of their lives.
For greater understanding, consider the songs of Elvis Presley: Not all his songs were bad. Some of them had a good impact on the listener. However, this was an open door that led to the acceptance by almost everyone over time of the bad kind of music and lyrics.
For example: think of the song by Elvis Presley: “Love Me Tender.” A beautiful song sung by him that many people still enjoy listening to from time to time.
Satan knew the young people of that era would be the generation who would fill the gaps of leadership in the years to come. He knew that some of them would lead the way to a very permissive lifestyle that would have its impact on all of society in one way or another. We have seen this in the highest office of this country and not that many years ago, and the downslide continues today by perhaps the most liberal president of all!
Satan Used Elvis Presley to Open the Door to Other Rock Bands
Elvis Presley did open the door to other rock bands. They came to have an even more disastrous impact on the nations of Israel than he did through their despicable lyrics and music!
Young, talented and skilled men of that society and time observed Elvis Presley leading the younger generation with his music on radio, television, and in movies! His suggestive hip-swinging style accompanied by lyrics and music caught on like wildfire; observing what he had done; they knew the door was now open to them as well!
And to equal or excel him in popularity they had to not only imitate his style, but also to expand on what he did by beginning the use of explicit sexual, arrogant, and rebellious language against constituted authority. And it continues today.
T
he
very popular Beatles from England, who followed Elvis Presley, stated
they would have never been accepted except for him.
The Demented Charles Manson
Some of the Beetle’s music and song was used for destructive purposes as well.
On August 9, 1969, Sharon Tate and others were murdered in their home. The Beatles song, “Helter Skelter” and other songs from the White Album inspired Charles Manson and his fanatical followers to murder these people (source: internet).
Helter Skelter - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Helter Skelter "is a song written by Paul McCartney, credited to Lennon/McCartney, and recorded by The Beatles on The White Album. A product of McCartney's deliberate effort to create a sound as loud and dirty as possible, the clangorous piece has been noted for both a "proto- metal roar" and "unique textures."
I
t
was one of several White Album compositions taken by Charles
Manson
as elaborate prophecy of a war to arise from racial tensions between
blacks and whites. ... As the murderers were leaving, they wrote,
“Pig” on the front door, allegedly inspired by the
Beatles song, “Piggies.”
On the following night they murdered the LaBianca family in their home. As they were leaving they wrote (misspelled) “healter skelter” on the refrigerator.
Satanic Songs and Lyrics
These innocent people were murdered by the Satanic inspiration from those songs that led Charles Manson’s followers into believing their leader was Jesus Christ; one who could do no wrong!
Again, it was Elvis Presley who opened the door not only for them, but many others as well. He was the father of the rock bands who were to follow.
From that point, the so-called music and song has rapidly degenerated into acid rock, and now rap, both of which are full of sexual innuendo as well as very explicit four-letter words that go so far as to speak of killing policemen.
Who knows how much worse it will come to be before the complete demise of the House of Israel?
The 1960s
The 1960s continued to change America as never before! Perhaps more than any other generation; but it is important to realize the 1950s led society into the further acceleration of evil of the 1960s.
Real violence began to erupt in the 1960s. Though the Vietnam War was used as an outbreak for civil disobedience and demonstrations it only intensified hatred for the constituted government of this country and society.
There was great turmoil within the youth culture that has led us into the problems we see today. This was the decade that changed America! With what had taken place in the 1950s, the move continued forward in further loss of moral values and rebellion against constituted authority!
T
his
was also the generation that led to the hippie movement who
were in rebellion against their peers! No longer did they want to
follow the restraints of the status quo!
There are books that reveal it was during those years that the mindless hatred of law and authority that had been smoldering under the surface on the campuses of the colleges and universities of America began surfacing in a manner that had never been seen before in this generation.
A
few very vocal students at the University of California in Berkley,
California took the lead role in the mid-1960s with a defiant free
speech movement against the establishment that centered round the
Vietnam War; and it spread from there to other states!
Over the next few years older people witnessed this rebellion in ways that had never before been seen in this country. Their offspring began waging a war with the status quo, demanding change!
As the result, we witness in present day society a bizarre and self-destructive youth culture that tears at the heartstrings of many parents!
Though different answers can be offered for the reasons, one must not fail to realize the very major factor of music and accompanying lyrics must not be overlooked or underestimated for it has proved to be a very powerful influence on the youth of this country and contributed greatly to the beginning of the dramatic change that would follow and is with us today.
J
udge
Bork wrote in his book, Slouching Towards Gomorrah,
pages 50-51, “they r
ejected
middle-class morality for an unprecedented permissiveness. A
lifestyle of, “If it feels good, do it,” “do your
own thing,” “it is forbidden to forbid.”
The name Woodstock is yet remembered by many even though the events connected with it happened almost 50 years ago. This was the place where half a million youths gathered and camped in the rain and mud TO LISTEN TO ROCK MUSIC, take drugs, and engage in the freedom of sex with any and all they chose.
This degenerate festival with its show of defiance toward the establishment was celebrated by a similar gathering on its 25th anniversary.
The 1960s was termed at the time a decade of near revolutionary upheaval! It combined domestic disruption and violence with an explosion of drug use and sexual promiscuity along with new lows of vulgarity!
From this near revolutionary period of time it becomes very easy to see where this has dramatically escalated into what we see and hear today.
It has become very easy for one to hear both men and women commonly using four-letter words without any shame, embarrassment or apologies, regardless of who is nearby! Movies are filled with this kind of garbage!
A poll was recently conducted and it found the majority of men and women use profanity, potty language, and the four-lettered sex word most of the time. It is termed trashy language! There is no respect for themselves or others in their midst!
God used His prophet Jeremiah to make known the sad state of affairs with men and women today:
“Were they ashamed when they had committed abominations? No! They were not at all ashamed; nor do they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time I will punish them, they shall be cast down,” says the LORD (Jeremiah 6:15; 8:12).
It is no wonder our Creator God is very angry with His chosen people Israel!
The Deception of Drug Use
The use of drugs has nearly permeated all levels of society! It is sad to realize young and old alike will go to any length to experience the sensual effect of a hallucinogenic, euphoric drug of their choice or whatever they can get to give them a high!
A
t
the same time they know that using them will sooner or later rob them
of their income, health, and sometimes even their lives! Tragically,
they are willing to pay any price for a temporary feeling of pleasure
and well-being. There is no real thought of tomorrow and what it
might bring.
Drugs are very deceptive, much like bad music, wrong teachings, and freedom for promiscuity, for each leads to mental and physical suffering, and eventually a tragic end!
Yet, even knowing these things, people become so addicted to the use of drugs that some resort to robbery or worse to obtain them! Some even steal from their own families to have the money to buy them.
The deception of drugs is similar to a prostitute, displaying her charms and impudent face, and enticing men to spend their money for a little time with her! With its ability to temporarily satisfy a need drugs have taken an unrelenting hold on both young and old in virtually all nations. They are hooked on them!
Though the use of these kinds of drugs is illegal, they are so widespread in all the nations of Israel the authorities can do very little to remove them, although the effort continues.
Dealing in drugs has become a very big business in this country and in other nations, for there is a lot of money to be made and no lack of people wanting to buy them.
Though the authorities try hard to stamp it out the number one crop in the state of California is Marijuana! The law enforcement agencies cannot fully eradicate it!
Topless Waitresses
It was also in the 1960s that restaurants in the greater Los Angeles, California area began advertising their restaurants as having topless waitresses; women who would have their breasts bared while serving their customers. Needless to say, the restaurants had no lack of diners. Later, some places began to feature bottomless women.
At the same time this has led to the almost complete nudity we now see in public and on television. There are even some nude beaches set aside for such people.
The 1980s
I
n
his book, Slouching Towards Gomorrah, Page 2, Judge
Bork wrote that “the spirit of the 1960s REVIVED
in the 1980s, and brought us at last to Bill and Hillary Clinton.
The very personification of the 1960s arrived at early middle
age with its ideological baggage intact.”
Summarizing the Past Decades
William Bennett has written that we have witnessed in the past 30 years a profound shift in public attitudes. Polls show that “we Americans now place less value on what we owe others as a matter of moral obligation; less value on sacrifice as a moral good, on social conformity, respectability, and observing the rules; less value on correctness and restraint in matters of physical pleasure and sexuality – and correlatively greater value on things like self-expression, individualism, self-realization and personal choice.”
Though Mr. Bennett is correct in his analysis, the shift goes back to better than 50 years, as we have already seen, rather than 30 years.
Loss of Knowledge of the Creator God
The generation of young people of the 1950s and 1960s are now parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. For the most part, they are people who have rejected what little they knew about the teachings of God from their parents – if they had any at all.
This has resulted in the young people of college age today knowing very little, if anything about God and His teachings, due to not having been taught anything about Him or His laws by their parents. With this in mind it is easy to understand why the name of God is rapidly being removed from all State and Federal buildings.
To further see our decline, swearing on the Bible in court to tell the truth is no longer required.
The Rejection of God and Jesus Christ
The following writing makes it very clear the name of God is not wanted and recognition of Him is disappearing from public life:
SHALL WE
HIRE
A MONUMENT ENGRAVER TO GO TO
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY AND
ADD THE MISSING WORDS?
A MESSAGE FROM AN
APPALLED OBSERVER:
“Today I went to visit the new World War II Memorial in Washington, DC. I got an unexpected history lesson. Because I'm a baby boomer, I was one of the youngest in the crowd. Most were the age of my parents, veterans of "the greatest war," with their families. It was a beautiful day, and people were smiling and happy to be there. Hundreds of us milled around the memorial, reading the inspiring words of Eisenhower and Truman that are engraved there.
“On the Pacific side of the memorial, a group of us gathered to read the words President Roosevelt used to announce the attack on Pearl Harbor:
“Yesterday, December 7, 1941 – a date which will live in infamy – the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked.”
“One elderly woman read the words aloud:
“With confidence in our armed forces, with the unbounding determination of our people, we will gain the inevitable triumph.”
“But as she read, she suddenly turned angry. "Wait a minute," she said, "they left out the end of the quote. They left out the most important part. Roosevelt ended the message with “so help us God.”
“Her husband said, "You are probably right. We're not supposed to say things like that now."
"I know I'm right," she insisted. "I remember the speech." The two looked dismayed, shook their heads sadly and walked away.
“Listening to their conversation, I thought to myself, "Well, it has been over 50 years. She's probably forgotten."
“But she had not forgotten. She was right.
“I went home and pulled out the book my book club is reading – "Flags of Our Fathers" by James Bradley. It's all about the battle at Iwo Jima.
“I haven't gotten too far in the book. It's tough to read because it's a graphic description of the WWII battles in the Pacific.
“But! right there it was on page 58. Roosevelt's speech to the nation ends in "so help us God."
“The people who edited out that part of the speech when they engraved it on the memorial could have fooled me. I was born after the war. But they couldn't fool the people who were there. Roosevelt’s words are engraved on their hearts.
“Now I ask: "WHO GAVE THEM THE RIGHT TO CHANGE THE WORDS OF HISTORY?????????"
“Send this around to your friends. People need to know before everyone forgets. People today are trying to change the history of America by leaving God out of it, but the truth is, God has been a part of this nation, since the beginning. He still wants to be . . . and He always will be!”
A Godless Nation
The fallout from this is what we see today – a very immoral generation. It should be realized that once people begin to degenerate the only course from there is further degeneration!
With all that had taken place during the preceding years, and witnessing the change in public acceptance and toleration of the loss of moral values, there were those who had heretofore been hiding their perverse sins and now knew the time had come when they could be accepted by society! And they were right!
We now witness a generation that has not only come out of the closet concerning their practice of homosexuality and lesbianism, but openly display it with no embarrassment whatsoever, just as was prophesied by Isaiah:
“The look on their countenance witnesses against them, and they DECLARE their sin as Sodom; they do NOT hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought evil upon themselves” (Isaiah 3:9).
F
rom
what has been witnessed of their massive parades in the past few
years and are continuing today in major cities and even in Tel Aviv,
Israel, it can be seen that others are also involving themselves in
the same deviant behavior instead of the natural and lawful use of
sex within marriage! Men with men and women with women (Romans
1:24-32)!
It is understandable why this generation has been termed selfish, with no thought, love or concern for his or her neighbor, nor for their thoughts, or their immorality.
Mankind has now entered the point of no return in regard to lawlessness! And though we may wish and pray for a return to true values, it is not going to happen! It will only get worse.
There are many who grieve for what they now see in society.
To be continued—
Your servant and friend,
Don Billingsley
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