Unconsidered difficulties for Christians in the face of moral decline

There is currently no pressure group making greater advances in today's society than that which advocates the cause of homosexuality. Almost on a weekly basis it appears that decisions are made to accommodate their desires, with anyone who opposes it being labelled as a bigot and homophobic. The recent law to allow gay marriages in England and Wales has already given rise to one homosexual couple launching legal action to force the Church of England to carry out gay marriages on their premises. Beyond the area of homosexuality, stories have been run recently by the BBC on 'polyamorous relationships' where four people live in simultaneous relationships with each other. Meanwhile in Kenya two men have announced an agreement to marry the same women in a wife sharing deal. When we consider such immorality we often think of its general effect of society, and of the pressures which churches and Christian businesses will be placed under, yet we often forget the difficulties which will arise for individual Christians in their normal daily life as such standards become more widespread and accepted.

Repentance unto life

What is repentance? We could answer the question cynically by saying that repentance is something which is rarely mentioned, for in many churches today it is no longer preached upon, the truth of the gospel being watered down so much that sin and repentance are absent from most sermons. The seeker sensitive method of preaching is employed instead, leading men to preach only upon that which the people wish to hear. The need for sinners to repent is not popular, therefore it is disregarded and left out of the message. Yet however unpopular and unpalatable the doctrine of repentance many be to sinful man, it is a necessary part of true conversion and something which needs to be repeatedly brought to the attention of those who are outside of Christ. Question number 87 of the Shorter Catechism describes repentance unto life as 'a saving grace, whereby a sinner out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavour after, new obedience'. This statement gives a very clear description of what true repentance is, identifying five distinctive characteristics:

Was Christ really punished for our sin?

The Presbyterian Church (USA) recently created controversy with its decision to drop the hymn 'In Christ Alone' by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend from its new hymnal. The reason for this decision centred around some of the lyrics found in verse two which stated 'on that cross as Jesus died, the wrath of God was satisfied'. The presbytery committee in charge of the new hymnal had wanted to substitute 'the wrath of God was satisfied' with 'the love of God was magnified'. When the authors refused their permission for this change, the committee then took the decision to drop the hymn rather than include it with the original words. The reason for their taking issue with the words of that line centred around the word 'satisfied' and its link with the doctrine of penal substitution; that Christ as our substitute bore the wrath of God on the cross which we deserved and so satisfied the divine law. So are the PCUSA right in their view that the cross is not an instrument of God's wrath or did God really punish Christ on the cross?

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.

A Royal Birth

The media frenzy surrounding the pregnancy of the Duchess of Cambridge came to a height on Monday with the news that she had been taken to St Mary's Hospital in labour. The press reporters who had been encamped outside the hospital for the last week were finally rewarded with the news that the Duchess had delivered a baby boy at 16:24pm. Understandably the nation's, and indeed the world's attention has been focused on this happy occasion and we would also congratulate the royal couple at this time, but it also causes our thoughts to turn to another birth spoken of in the Bible; that of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Archbishop's dose of the measles

An article carried in The Telegraph newspaper this week of an interview with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has highlighted the gross apostasy at the very heart of the Church of England. In that interview he makes the shocking statement about his conversion that 'I was desperately embarrassed that this had happened to me, it was like getting the measles'! The content of the Archbishop's interview make it abundantly clear that he has never had the experience of the new birth, and that he has no true understanding of the gospel. That this can be said of the pre-eminent church leader in England is a sad state of affairs, indeed the spiritual darkness in England should be no surprise where men like this proclaim to be teachers of God's word. When we take into account the fact that Justin Welby is described as being on the evangelical wing of the Church of England it is evident to all just how far that denomination has fallen.

The alternative to 'Gay Pride'

Tomorrow Belfast's annual Gay Pride parade will once again take place on the streets of Belfast. The hundreds, if not thousands, of participants will display their pride in their homosexuality during the parade around the city. Some small groups of faithful Christians will make a stand against this display of sin, not as many would claim, out of hatred for homosexuals, but out of love for their souls. Sadly other churches will join with those who delight in their sin, with St Georges Church in Belfast's High Street having held regular services this week in association with 'Faith and Pride'. That group describes itself as 'an organisation with one simple point: you can be Christian and Gay'.

The Bible however holds a different view, not that you can be 'Christian and Gay' but that homosexuality is wrong. Yet there is a deliverance from all manner of sin for the following words are found in 1st Corinthians 6:9-11:

'Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God'.

Paul here speaks to men and women in the church who had previously been involved in all manner of sin, including homosexuality, yet they had been redeemed and were now part of the church. They had left their sin behind them and turned to Christ. They had no pride in their sin such as many tomorrow will exhibit, nor did they describe themselves as Christian and gay, but they were now sanctified by the Holy Spirit, new creatures in Christ.

This is the alternative to Gay Pride; humble repentance. It is a far better alternative, one that does not delight and take pride in sin, nor to try and make it an acceptable part of the Christian life. It is an alternative which brings everlasting life and delivers us from the curse and penalty of sin. 'Repent and believe the gospel' for 'Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.'

Five Joyce Meyer quotes you won't post on Facebook

Joyce Meyer is one of the most popular Christian speakers and authors around today. In 2005 TIME Magazine placed her 17th in their list of the most influential evangelicals in America. She has sold millions of copies of her books and it would be hard to find many more popular names within Christianity today. Popularity however is not to be the measure by which we judge a person but we are to 'try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world'. Matthew 12:37 says 'by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned'. It is biblical to look at a person's words that we might test them by scripture to see if they are true, but sadly in Joyce Meyer's case we find that there is much to be concerned about. Although she is often quoted by Christians on social media, there is nothing in the following statements which any believer could recommend to their friends. (It is not our desire to quote anyone out of context and if it can be shown that any of the following quotes have been taken in such a manner we will gladly remove them)