Same sex marriage and abortion - what now?

It is now apparent that same sex marriage and abortion will be undemocratically foisted upon Northern Ireland as a result of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc) Act 2019. This will be a matter of great sorrow to all true believers in our province; both that the God ordained institution of marriage will be marred by the oxymoron of gay marriage, and also that any protection for the life of the unborn child will be removed. Whilst it is easy to focus our attention on where the blame should lie in these matters, and there are those who will certainly answer to God for their actions, the real question for the church is what it should do now. For long we have sought to prevent these things taking place, so does their pending implementation now mean that the battle is lost and our fight is over?

The marketing value of sin

It is a well known saying that 'sex sells'; the use of sexualised imagery being common in marketing, its intent to attract consumer interest in a particular product or service. Yet we can also say today that ‘sin sells’. The promotion of and identification with that which is sinful, and its use in marketing is increasingly evident all around us. With the advent of every ‘Pride’ celebration the logos of numerous companies are emblazoned with the colours of the rainbow, identification with the LGBT cause being almost ubiquitous, and evidently seen as a necessary publicity tactic. Clearly sin sells in the case of homosexuality. In Northern Ireland the local connection with the Game of Thrones TV show is massively exploited for tourism purposes, with the Northern Ireland economy receiving an estimated £250 million from Game of Thrones since 2010, and 350,000 people a year visiting the province because of it. It is a sad commentary on the spiritual decline in Northern Ireland that the province is now best known and celebrated as the location of a programme notorious for excessive violence and gratuitous pornographic imagery, including graphic depictions of rape and incest. Once again we can say that sin sells. The same too may be said of other vices such drunkenness; rather than being the object of shame, they are celebrated, promoted and used as a means of generating money - because sin sells.

Bethel Church, Bethel Music and Jesus Culture: A Warning

The city of Redding in California is the source of some of today's most popular Christian music. The non-denominational charismatic megachurch known as Bethel Church, based in Redding and pastured by Bill and Beni Johnson, is the fountain from which two groups, Bethel Music and Jesus Culture, have sprung. Their influence and popularity has grown considerably in recent years and has spread far beyond the confines of northern California, now sitting alongside the likes of Hillsong in terms of popular appeal. Northern Ireland is no exception to this, with either Bethel Music or Jesus Culture having held concerts or other events here over the past few years; Mandela Hall at Queens University, Whitewell Metropolitian Tabernacle and especially Journey Community Church in Antrim among those who have facilitated them. As part of their current UK tour they will be playing once again in Belfast, this time on 9th October at Whitewell Metropolitan Tabernacle.

Healing the Land: Ecumenical, not Evangelical

The level of spiritual illiteracy and ecumenism in Northern Ireland was displayed clearly last month during the Pope's visit to the Republic of Ireland, with it being welcomed across the broad spectrum of Protestantism, including the Presbyterian Moderator and the Evangelical Alliance. That same ecumenical spirit and lack of discernment will be evidenced once again this Saturday at Nutts Corner near Antrim, at a day of prayer organised by Healing the Land. There is no doubt that our land needs prayer, and believers ought to be burdened to pray for a moving of God's Spirit in revival power, however the event organised at Nutts Corner is patently ecumenical, and will deceive many genuine believers who desire to see God work once again, due to the use of evangelical sounding terminology. It is for this reason that we draw attention to it, for it is easy to be misled by that which sounds spiritual, yet has at its heart compromise and apostasy.

After Ashers - what now?

In the past week two significant events have caused grief to many Christians; the defeat of Ashers Bakery in their court case with the Equality Commission and the yes vote in the gay marriage referendum in the Republic of Ireland. During and shortly after the build up to the Ashers court case Christians across Northern Ireland have voiced their support for the company, attended rallies and pledged to buy their products. So too in the Republic of Ireland there have been those who have campaigned vigorously to maintain the biblical definition of marriage. Yet on both occasions those on the side of truth have suffered defeat. Like the psalmist David we have cried 'let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me' yet as we look around us we see the enemies of the gospel rejoicing in their victories, and declaring their intention to further pursue their anti-God agenda. In the face of an ever militant homosexual lobby we must ask ourselves, what should Christians do now?

Should a pastor be a politician?

With little more than a week to go until polling day, the United Kingdom is in full election mode. In Northern Ireland elections are an almost annual occurrence and politics is more ingrained in the public psyche here than in most other parts of the country. The two fields of religion and politics have often been interlinked, and many questions asked about what relationship they should have with each other. One question which is sometimes raised is whether gospel ministers should also hold political office. This is particularly relevant in Northern Ireland since there has been a long history of ministers also working as politicians. Rev Ian Paisley was an MP, MEP and MLA for many years whilst also moderator of the Free Presbyterian Church. Rev Martin Smyth was also involved in Northern Ireland political life whilst serving as a minister in the Presbyterian Church. Methodist minister Rev Robert Bradford likewise served as MP for South Belfast from 1974 until his tragic murder in 1981. Many others have also entered the field of politics over the years and continued their role as a church pastor. Even today ministers can be found actively involved in Northern Ireland politics. DUP Westminster candidate for South Antrim Rev William McCrea is a Free Presbyterian minister and Non-Subscribing Presbyterian minister Rev Paul Reid is a councillor in Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. Beyond the shores of Northern Ireland other examples could also be cited of gospel ministers who are also elected politicians. The question to be then asked is whether this should be so; should a gospel minister also take up political office?

Northern Ireland v The Lord's Day

On 29th March the Northern Ireland football team will play their first ever home international on a Sunday with a European Championship qualifier against Finland. Whilst there have been several occasions in the past where Northern Ireland have played games abroad on the Lord's Day (including the 1982 World Cup where Glentoran winger Johnny Jameson would not play in the Sunday game against France), this will be the first occasion that international football has taken place at Windsor Park on a Sunday. Although this is a sad development it is hardly a surprising one as respect for the Lord's Day has been in rapid decline for many years, not only among the unsaved, but also among professed believers.

The Irish Football Association have stated that the scheduling of this game is beyond their control as the fixture dates are dictated by UEFA, and this may well be the case, however the lifting of the IFA's ban on Sunday football in 2007 cannot be ignored. Either way it is a matter about which Christians in Ulster should be grieved as it is further evidence of declining biblical standards in our land. The event does however also call us to consider our own attitude to the Lord's Day and contemplate how we have sought to keep it holy. It is clear that Northern Ireland as a whole is more and more rejecting the setting apart of one day in seven as holy to the Lord, the question is whether Christians have actually contributed to this decline.

Why Integrated Education is detrimental to the future of Protestantism in Northern Ireland

In 1981 Lagan College was opened as the first integrated school in Northern Ireland, with the purpose of educating Roman Catholic and Protestant children side by side. Today some 22,000 children attend over 60 integrated school across Northern Ireland, at both primary and secondary level. The issue of integrated education has become prominent once again in the media over recent months, and all of the main political parties in Northern Ireland have come out in favour of a single educated system. Whilst some have described their preferred option as being shared education, as opposed to integrated education, the differences between the two are minimal for they both have the same purpose, to break down barriers between the Protestant and Roman Catholic communities in Northern Ireland. It is clear that the future of education in Northern Ireland will be strongly influenced by the shared/integrated model with more children being educated this way.

Jeremiah, Judah and Northern Ireland

This week Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson launched an attack on his critics describing them as 'a tribe of Jeremiahs'. No doubt he chose the term considering them to be nothing but doom and gloom merchants, yet it was a very poor comparison to make and detrayed an ignorance of scripture. Jeremiah was God's appointed prophet, sent to warn the people of Judah against the judgement which God would very soon visit upon their land. Whilst to many at that time this seemed to be a very depressing message, it was not a message of Jeremiah's choosing, but that which God had revealed to him. In the eyes of the Lord Jeremiah was a faithful servant, one of but few in a time of spiritual apostasy. For the First Minister to describe others as a Jeremiah in a derogatory sense indicates that he looks at Jeremiah from the viewpoint of the ungodly, something which he would do well think over. The faithful Christian would not be disheartened to be described as a Jeremiah, indeed our province could do with many Jeremiahs, a tribe of them would do the land no end of good. Peter Robinson's comments were unwise and unscriptural, and although they were used in the political sphere, they give us cause to think of spiritual matters, of Jeremiah's ministry and what comparison can be made with the times we live in, particularly the spiritual state and direction of Northern Ireland.

Are you really a Protestant?

A couple of months ago an open air preacher was approached by a group of men on Belfast's Shankill Road who objected to his preaching the gospel. In his defence he told them that he was preaching a Protestant message, surely thinking that no-one in one of Belfast's most historically Protestant roads could openly object to his preaching when it was couched in those terms. The response of the men however was that they were not Protestants, they were Loyalists. Such an incident is a sad indication of how Christianity has declined in Ulster in recent decades, a land once renowned for the preaching of the gospel has, even in one of its most staunchly 'protestant' areas, no time for the Word of God. There is however a great truth in the response of those men on the Shankill Road, for being Loyalist or Unionist does not necessarily mean being Protestant. There are many people who have grown up in Loyalist areas and when asked what religion they are, they would immediately give the answer that they were Protestant. In the majority of cases however, what they are simply saying is that they are not Roman Catholic, their answer it political and cultural more than religious. In the 2011 Northern Ireland Census over 875,000 people described themselves as Protestant. Yet there is no doubt that in many of these cases their Protestantism is simply a historical one; their parents or grandparents went to a Protestant church so they also consider themselves to be Protestant. Yet the true definition of a Protestant is not found in our cultural identity, nor is it not defined by the waving of Union Flag or the wearing of a t-shirt stating that we are 'Proud to be a Prod'. The true definition of a Protestant is rooted in a faith in the Word of God.

Why the homosexual lobby is winning the battle for Britain's morality

If the Her Majesty's Government has its way, it will be very soon passed into law that marriage can be defined as a union between two men, or between two women. The traditional, and more importantly, the biblical definition of marriage as the union between one man and one woman will effectively be consigned to history, a change that will have great implications for society. Such a move would have been unthinkable only a generation ago, indeed even when civil partnerships were introduced eight years ago the assurance was given that it was not gay marriage. However just a few years on polls have found that 60% of people support the introduction of gay marriage. Even here in Northern Ireland where the gay marriage legislation will not come into effect there is, in truth, little opposition to it. Our province, which just over 30 years ago still considered homosexuality to be a criminal offence, is now open to it, with even professed Christian ministers being found among its supporters. Everywhere we look the sin of Sodom is promoted and recommended and the battle for the morals of our land appears to be lost as biblical principles are trampled under the cause of equality and human rights. The every demand of the homosexual lobby is met with open arms by our government and by the population at large, indeed it has come to the point where to be homosexual almost has an air of trendiness to it and to display any opposition is to bring the accusation of bigotry. In such a state we must ask ourselves how it has all gone so wrong, how have we lost the battle for the morality of our nation?

The bias of the media

One factor which has contributed to the rise in acceptance of homosexuality is the increase of it's promotion through the media. So much is homosexuality pushed into the faces of people today that they have become accustomed to and accepting of it. That which only a short time ago was outlawed in our land is now a source of entertainment, indeed hardly can we turn on the television but we are bombarded with homosexual story lines and homosexual celebrities. So called stars such as Elton John and Gok Wan regularly fill our television screens and every soap opera has its homosexual characters to keep us entertained. In 1994 when Brookside screened the first pre-watershed lesbian kiss on British television it generated considerable headlines, however today homosexual story lines are the norm. A BBC report commissioned in late 2012 has even recommended that the organisation should be more creative and bolder in how it depicts homosexuals in it's programming, it has even said that children's television should be used to help familiarise children with homosexual characters from an early age. What a sign it is of how far our country has fallen that the innocence of children would be exploited by those who seek to advance their own perverse agendas. Yet what is saddest about the promotion of homosexuality through the media is that it has not changed the viewing habits of many Christians. Although their favourite soap operas, dramas and sit-coms have become the medium of promoting the homosexual agenda, yet they still find themselves glued to them every night of the week. Such a reality is but indicative of the fact that, in truth, many Christians are indifferent to the advancement of the homosexual cause that is so evident around us.

The indifference of Christians

It is a great indictment on the Christian church today that so many are indifferent to the advances of the homosexual lobby and to its dangers. Whilst it is not a great surprise that liberals and modernists have supported it demands, it is more sad that the majority of so called evangelicals, those who ought to be at the forefront of opposition to moral decline, have been found wanting. In word they may be opposed to it, yet in deed so few are found to make any true stand against it. When the 'Gay Pride' parade is held in Belfast each year there are but a smattering of Christians prepared to make a visible witness against, their numbers being vastly overwhelmed by the general population who come out to support it. Many believers are found at home, opposed to it in principle, yet not found to be putting that principle into practice. The word of God is clear that Christians are 'the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted'. Where the majority of evangelical believers have failed to take a stand against moral decline, what hope is there that others will do so. The silence and inactivity of many Christians can only be explained by the fact that they do not realise the inherent dangers in the current rise of homosexuality. Like Lot they have lived in Sodom, surrounded by and accustomed to its sin, but undesirous of speaking out against it. If the Christian response continues to be as it has, what can we expect but that our country will fall further into the abyss morally, each generation becoming more wicked than the previous.

The failure of politicians

When the Northern Ireland Gay Rights Association was established in the late 1970s to push for the decriminalising of homosexuality in Northern Ireland, it was met with the response of the 'Save Ulster from Sodomy' campaign. Christians politicians were vehemently opposed to the suggestion of homosexuality being legalised. Yet fast forward a few decades and the response has been considerably diluted. Whilst many of Northern Ireland's politicians do still oppose homosexuality and have voted against gay marriage, the signs are there of a significant shift in their attitudes. When the civil partnership bill was introduced in 2005 it passed through every Northern Ireland council without hindrance. Barely a voice was raised in protest, the attitude being taken by many of 'what can we do'. The seeds of this failure are now becoming clear for all to see, with funding for homosexual groups continuing despite the presence of Christians in our government. Last years Belfast Pride event had representation from all the major political parties; with UUP, SDLP, Sinn Fein and Alliance members walking in the parade, and the DUP Lord Mayor taking part in a question panel. The first step for that party, sadly it is likely to be one of many steps on a downward slope. What is clear for all to see is that politicians here, and across the United Kingdom have failed in their duty to uphold moral standards. Their failure has contributed to the advancement of the homosexual agenda and will be doubtless have great consequences for the generation of children growing up today. 

In the midst of all this we must ask ourselves, what can we do? 2 Chronicles 7:14 says that 'If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.' We must give ourselves to prayer, we must bear a clear witness for biblical standards and must be that salt, that light which is so greatly lacking in our land. Only the Lord can turn our land once again to him, can direct our politicians aright and can reform the morals of the people. We pray that he would do so, that we would not be as Sodom and Gomorrah, but that we would be spared and delivered from the wrath of God.

For God and Ulster

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the formation of the Ulster Volunteer Force by the Ulster Unionist Council and Sir Edward Carson. Their purpose was not to terrorise the inhabitants of Ulster but to defend them, should Home Rule be imposed. Following on from the rally at Balmoral at Easter 1912, the Carson Trail and the signing of the Ulster Covenant on 28th September 1912, the formation of the UVF was seen as the next step in ensuring that Ulster remained British. The purpose of their formation could truly be said to have been for God and Ulster, to defend their land should it be cut off by Britain, against the repercussions of 'Rome rule' that would surely follow.

Why there is rioting on the streets of Belfast

Fifteen years ago the Good Friday Agreement was signed by the majority of political parties in Northern Ireland. It was endorsed in a referendum by 71% of the population and was seen as a historic breakthrough in the peace process, a way of putting 'The Troubles' behind us. In 2006 the St Andrews Agreement was the means of restoring those institutions set up in 1998, the agreement of all the main political parties surely the sign of a new Northern Ireland, one where the violence on the streets would surely be a thing of the past.

Yet the events across Northern Ireland in recent weeks have shown that little has been achieved by these two agreements. Indeed it could be said that the situation is worse now than it has been for several years. So called dissident republican groups continue to target members of the security forces and loyalists have engaged in rioting in recent weeks as a result of the removal of the Union Flag from City Hall. Why are such problems still evident in Northern Ireland society. Loyalists will say that their rioting is provoked by the erosion of their British culture. When republicans riot they will often blame an Orange march. Yet this does not truly answer the question. Why, in such circumstances do people respond with violence. What is the mindset that causes a youth to throw a petrol bomb as their response to a band parade? 

The Importance of Flying the Flag

On 3rd December 2012 the decision was taken by Belfast City Council that the Union Flag would no longer fly from City Hall 365 days a year, but only on a small number of designated days. This decision has understandably been met with anger by many in the Loyalist and Unionist community who have seen it as a further erosion of their British culture and identity. For the last month street protests and rallies have been held across the province in opposition to the Council's decision. Sadly on some occasions legitimate protest has also been accompanied by violence and intimidation.

Many people have claimed that it is 'only a flag', yet the flying of a flag is an important issue because of what a flag represents. It is not simply a piece of cloth but is an important symbol to people of who they are. For any countries flag to be removed will naturally be met with a hostile reception by those loyal to it, as it will be viewed as an act of surrender and retreat. There are 5 things symbolised by the flying of a flag which show why it is so important: