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| Who is Persecuting the "Evangelicals" in Mexico? |
| 31.5.05 |
From Voice of the Martyrs:(Compass Direct)
On May 15th, Pastor Francisco Sanchez Gonzalez and church member Raul Bautista were arrested. The arrests came after a decision by the town assembly to "eradicate" evangelical Christians from the area. Local officials informed church members that they must renounce their evangelical faith and pay a fine of 1,000 pesos (approximately $110) by the end of May, or else their homes and the church's chapel will be torn down. Legal representatives of the evangelical church have asked state and federal authorities to intervene and see to it that the Cuateceometl Christians be allowed to worship freely, which is guaranteed in Mexico's constitution.
Interesting story, a true need for prayer. But I became a bit suspicious when I saw "evangelical" Christians specified. Why? Because this is the full version of the story from Compass Direct News:EVANGELICALS JAILED, FINED FOR THEIR FAITH
Hidalgo town threatens to tear down homes of those refusing to recant.
May 19 (Compass) -- Every year since establishing the Fountain of Heaven Church in Cuateceometl in 1997, some members of this evangelical congregation in the Mexican state of Hidalgo have spent short periods of time in jail.
That is not because they are guilty of any crime. It happens because the majority of the town residents are Roman Catholics and local authorities have assumed a position of intolerance toward any other religious expression.
On May 15, evangelical believers in the modest rural congregation, which is part of the Abundant Life Christian Fraternity, suffered yet another indignity. That Sunday morning, six police officers and a local Catholic catechist appeared at the church at 10 a.m. and arrested Pastor Francisco Sanchez Gonzalez and church member Raul Bautista.
Fraternity Takes Action
The arrests prompted national leaders of the Abundant Life Christian Fraternity to take action on behalf of the beleaguered believers in Cuateceometl. Gregorio Gonzalez, a Mexico City pastor and the legal representative of the denomination, and Christian lawyer Alfonso Ferrera brought the plight of Fountain of Heaven Church to the attention of state and federal authorities.
Ferrera, a religious rights activist, directs the United Party for Mexico (PUM in Spanish) in the nearby state of Mexico. He joined Gonzalez in asking government authorities to see to it that Fountain of Heaven members be allowed to worship freely -- a right guaranteed by the Mexican constitution.
Town Votes to Eradicate Evangelicals
Cuateceometl lies in Huejutla de Reyes municipality in the central state of Hidalgo. The local assembly (town meeting) recently decided to eradicate all non-Catholic Christians from the area.
Gonzalez said the assembly imposed a fine of 1,000 pesos (approximately $110) on every member of the church and informed them that they must renounce their evangelical faith.
Members of the Fountain of Heaven Church have until the end of May to comply, or else their homes and the church's chapel will be torn down.
Even if the believers do deny their evangelical faith, which is quite unlikely, they must still pay the fine, an enormous sum for families in rural Mexico.
Government Promise
Government authorities reportedly promised to intervene in the Cuateceometl crisis before the May 31 deadline.
Pastor Sanchez was released from jail the same Sunday evening. However, Bautista was not freed for 48 hours, and then only after a relative paid the 1,000-peso fine.
The Fountain of Heaven Church is the only non-Catholic congregation in a wide area surrounding Cuateceometl. However, small towns nearby reportedly have one or two families each who profess the evangelical faith.
This is what Romanism is really all about. They killed many for holding a Biblical worldview- like the pharisees persecuted in the name of God. If you are in the "Roman Catholic church," you should renounce it and seek the God of the Bible, not of satanic church tradition.
The Roman Catholic Catechism states: "Both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal sentiments of devotion and reverence."
This is not Biblical. The Bible is the Word of God and the pope is not Christ's substitute (or the vicar of Christ as he is referred to); and the church is not equal to God's Word. It is bound by His Word or it is not functioning as His Church.Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. --Colossians 2.8 NKJV Church "tradition is what drives the anti-Christ empowering Romanist church. So-called "evangelical Christians" (the Biblical ones anyway) should not embrace Catholicism, rather we should witness adherents. May God draw them into His own kingdom! |
posted by pregador27 @ 23:26   |
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| Youth Specialties Hosts Heretic (Again) |
| 18.5.05 |
| I had to demand off the Youth Specialties mailing list due to their poisoning the minds of the youth by having Tony Campolo as a speaker at their "National Youth Workers Convention." His topic? "Christians in Politics." Seeing that he is a leftist who coddled Klinton and has espoused things such as not needing Jesus for salvation to homosexuality not being a big deal (in true Cooperative Baptist Fellowship fashion- the moderate [actually liberal] spinoff of the Southern Baptist Convention), I do not see how any truly Christian organization can partner with him. |
| posted by pregador27 @ 11:41 |
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| Evangelicals and Catholics Together: Statement of Rejection |
| 11.5.05 |
In March of 1994, many so-called "leading evangelicals" penned Evangelicals and Catholics Together: The Christian Mission in the 3rd Millennium with some Roman Catholic leaders. About this Christian author and "revivalist" Don Walton writes the following:
According to this historic joint declaration, signed by American evangelical and Catholic leaders on March 24, 1994, evangelical Christians are no longer to question the veracity of Roman Catholicisms Mary worshiping, rosary praying, pope following, penance paying, purgatory suffering, saint venerating, candle burning, sacrament observing salvation. Instead, we are to refrain from witnessing to Roman Catholics and begin acknowledging them as our brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of whether or not they have been born again. After all, in these politically-correct times, easing religious tensions and sparing peoples feelings is far more important than sharing Christ with lost souls.
The signing of Evangelicals and Catholics Together by such evangelical luminaries as Charles Colson (one of the chief originators), Pat Robertson, Richard Land, Os Guinness, J. I. Packer, and the late Bill Bright should give all of us pause. If such renowned Christian leaders fail to see how such a contract with Roman Catholicism compromises the gospel, undermines the Great Commission, and puts us in bed with the great whore of Revelation 17 and 18, what hope is there that todays uninformed Christian laity will catch it? Truly, these perilous times of spreading worldwide apostasy are being made even more perilous by an easily compromised, undiscerning church.
He has researched this and has enough "controversial" information to write a book. I have encouraged him to do so.
Roman Catholic doctrine teaches that Scripture is only equal to "Holy Tradition." It also teaches a form of baptismal regeneration, works salvation, inclusiveness toward other "religions," and much more that is unacceptable from a Biblical view.
My friend Rand (A Form of Sound Words blog) is very dogmatic about the evil he perceives in the "Romanist" church. I am equally opposed to the RC Religion, but I feel there is a born-again remnant even there. My fight is not against the few RC Christians, but against the evil incorporated in the RC religion embodied by the pope and bishops all the way to most priests.
I hereby reject the foundations of the agreement entitled Evangelicals and Catholics Together: The Christian Mission in the 3rd Millennium. I will not refrain from sharing my faith with any unbeliever- whether they be from a Romanist church or an atheist, muslim, etc.
The Roman Catholic religion believes- in Constantinian fashion- that all can be saved, even if they do not know Jesus:
The universality of salvation means that it is granted not only to those who explicitly believe in Christ and have entered the Church. Since salvation is offered to all, it must be made concretely available to all. But it is clear that today, as in the past, many people do not have an opportunity to come to know or accept the gospel revelation or to enter the Church. The social and cultural conditions in which they live do not permit this, and frequently they have been brought up in other religious traditions.
For such people salvation in Christ is accessible by virtue of a grace which, while having a mysterious relationship to the Church, does not make them formally part of the Church but enlightens them in a way which is accommodated to their spiritual and material situation. This grace comes from Christ; it is the result of his Sacrifice and is communicated by the Holy Spirit. It enables each person to attain salvation through his or her free cooperation.
For this reason the Council, after affirming the centrality of the Paschal Mystery, went on to declare that "this applies not only to Christians but to all people of good will in whose hearts grace is secretly at work. Since Christ died for everyone, and since the ultimate calling of each of us comes from God and is therefore a universal one, we are obliged to hold that the Holy Spirit offers everyone the possibility of sharing in this Paschal Mystery in a manner known to God."
Excerpt from Redemptoris missio - Given in Rome, at St. Peter's, on December 7, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Conciliar Decree Ad Gentes, in the year 1990
I will defy people like Marcelo Rossi and evangelize Romanists, pagans and all- not accepting inclusion but transformation. More about Marcelo Rossi:
In the yahoo.com/FT story Pope's man fights to turn back Brazil's Evangelical tide , "Father" Marcelo Rossi is depicted as a faithful man of God doing his best to follow the will of the "vicar of Christ" Pope John Paul II and rid Brasil of Evangelicals (termed Evangelists in this article).
Mr. Rossi (I will not call him father) uses many means to sway people into Mary-worship and into the Catholic religion. His goal is supposed to be to do a work for God, but his work is solely for the Catholic church.
I know there are true believers in the Catholic church, but it is in spite of the Catholic doctrines. More information is available at the Southern Baptist Convention's Mission Board page on Catholicism. (from my old weblog)
I call to task Billy Graham- the new wave of heretic, Pat Robertson, Chuck Colson, Bill Bright, James Packer, et al despite some of them clarifying their positions later on. |
| posted by pregador27 @ 13:08 |
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| Keeping my Eyes on Jesus |
| 10.5.05 |
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
"Come," he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." I know many preachers have pointed this out, but it is the reason I love this story. Peter was fine, walking on water, stepping out in faith- childlike faith, just doing what he was told to do by Jesus- until he looked to the wind and began to panic. He took his eyes off Jesus and began to sink. I have done that too many times in my life. Right now I am struggling to keep my temper and attitude in check where I work.
I have watched a very close friend (my boss) betrayed by people who smiled to her face and stabbed her in the back. I had no idea that these things were going on. I found out "after-the-fact." I am livid to be working among some people who would claim to be Christians while gossiping and slandering their boss. I have made my displeasure known, but no one has said anything in front of me. They never have. They know I am loyal to my friends.
I was sickened to hear one of the "offenders" say "Praise Jesus" during a training. All I could think was that "Joe" (not his real name) was a better Christian than that person- and he's Jewish!
I think God has grown me to the point where I will not just sit back and allow sin to flourish in front of me. I stand for my convictions more now than ever. I used to sit back and act passively and rarely confront. Now I confront regularly and disagree face-to-face often. The problem with this gift and I feel it is one- I once prayed God would make me more like His prophets were, standing boldly for Him (no desire to foretell anything). The negative side of this gift is that I can begin confronting when it serves no purpose for the Kingdom of God. I am tempted to "put it out there" and let everyone know what they all know but keep a code of silence on. It would not be to support my convictions, nor would it serve a Biblical purpose. So I recognize that I need to focus on Jesus and keep quiet for now.
I am seeking a transfer- and only employees who happen to read this weblog (there may be one or two) will even know it's coming. It is not a big deal. I am not "inexpendible." But I do not want to be in such a place anymore. I have lost all respect for too many who work here.
So, as I await word on a transfer, I seek after Jesus. I try to keep my eyes on Him. He alone is faithful. Jesus é fiel.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6.33 KJV) |
| posted by pregador27 @ 21:44 |
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| The Birth of the Roman Catholic Religion |
| 7.5.05 |
And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:19-21 NIV)
I was having a long and interesting discussion with my spiritual father, Don Walton. He is one of the most brilliant men of God I have ever known. He is able to cut through the clutter of pop-Christianity and seek the Bible on it's own terms.
We were talking about the new pope and I asked him about the Catholic prophecies of the anti-Pope that would be the false prophet. He informed me that the actual prophecy came from a pope named Benedict and was expounded upon by "father" Malachy. He went further into the history of the Roman Catholic religion than I will in this space. He began with Julius Caesar and worked all the way to the current pope. The key for me regarding the Roman Catholic religion is Constantine. That is the birthplace of the Roman Catholic religion.
This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. (Revelation 17.9 NIV)
Constantine is the one who made Christianity legal in Rome and also made it the official religion of the Roman state. Rome was famous for conquering a people and assimilating them. Rome gave them freedom to remain who they were, but they became a part of Rome as well. It was a spiritual prostitution engaged in by the Roman Catholic religion:
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries." (Revelation 17.1-2 NIV)
This shaped the church of Constantine. The Roman Catholic church became the gathering place for all the pagans and unbelievers who wanted favor with Rome. Even pope John Paul II preached a message of acceptance of other religious beliefs and practices as long as there was a "conversion" to Roman Catholicism (or Romanism as Rand calls it).
This title was written on her forehead:
MYSTERY
BABYLON THE GREAT
THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. (Revelation 17.5 NIV)
This sets the stage for the one world religion spoken of in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. And the head of that religion is the pope of the Roman Catholic religion. The 112nd of which Benedict said would be the anti-pope, Peter II. The 110th of which was John Paul II and Benedict XVI is the 111th. (For those who do not get it, that would set up the next pope as the False Prophet, Peter 2.)
And just to clear one point, I do believe there are Roman Catholics who are Christians, but it is in spite of the RC religion, not because of it. I believe it is slightly more difficult to be saved in a RC church than in a 7th day adventist church and much more difficult that works-based Church of Christ and similar that add the WORK of baptism to salvation, as does the Roman Catholic religion I might add. |
| posted by pregador27 @ 12:30 |
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| So Much Time, So Little to Do |
| 6.5.05 |
Okay, that is actually backwards, but work has been extremely stressful and time consuming lately. Several things have combined to make me need to find strength in Jesus to make it through lately, but I know:
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4.13 NKJV)
Posso suportar todas as coisas com a ajuda de Cristo, que é a fonte da minha força. (Filipenses 4:13 OL)
That is why I have not walked out. When people gossip and slander, I try with all I am to not participate or lash out. When I feel that people let me down, I cling to Jesus. When I feel totally stressed, I remember:
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. (I Peter 5.7 KJV)
lançando sobre ele toda a vossa ansiedade, porque ele tem cuidado de vós. (1 Pedro 5:7 AA)
For now I will seek God for what I can and should do. I have a plan, my prayer is that it is one He inspired. May Christ be glorified. |
| posted by pregador27 @ 07:50 |
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