Judge expected to rule in Bible verse banner suit

In the Lone Star state trouble is brewing. Again. It seems some cheerleaders are making signs with Bible quotes written on them like:

If God is for us, who can be against us?

Romans 8:31

Who indeed is against them? Well, it seems that there is a group that wants America free from religion. The group, Freedom From Religion Foundation complained to the school district that the Kountze High School cheerleaders violated America’s First Amendment to its Constitution. This amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.

The School District responded to the complaint by banning the signs. So, the cheerleaders sued, arguing that the ban violates their free speech rights, which are also guaranteed in the First Amendment. The Judge has allowed the cheerleaders to continue until he decides the case. The decision is expected today.

What struck me as fascinating is that this anti-religion group stated: “If the majority of the cheerleaders were atheists, would a court support their ‘right’ to hold up a banner insulting Christianity or all believers?”

Wait just minute. There’s a name for this type of argument. It’s a typical argument used by too many these days. It’s saying that apples are the same as oranges. I mean, really, are the cheerleaders insulting non-believers? No. But here’s the rub. There are people who will condemn the right of Christians to speak freely, while they continue to speak their way in public and in schools. [Evolution is a theory. It is one of many theories. But the schools teach it like it was Truth.]

And the cheerleaders didn’t even use the Name of our Lord. Oh, they wrote G-d with a capital letter. That’s the same thing, isn’t it? They’d have been heralded in the media if they’d just said something like, “Who can be against us if our higher power is for us?” But too often Christians, if not outrightly banned, are harrassed and jeered for their faith.

We live among a people of unclean lips. We live in a generation that has no regard for Messiah Y’shuaJesus. They speak about the mother earth, celebrate holidays like the upcoming satanic halloween [I will not capitalize either word, and yes, they go together.]. And cheerleaders in Austin, Texas, are banned from signs that use the word G-d. What would have happened if they’d have said “JESUS” in a sign? Would they have been arrested for a hate crime? [Oh, that’s right, America has not yet adopted such facist methods of control.]

But you know where all this is going, right? It is headed for a time when the world says conflict will end if we just have a world government and a world religion. Confict will end when those Jesus freaks stop their rantings and get with the program. Even the big-box churches are starting to come around and incorporate Eastern-style thought into their teachings. Meditation. Inviting New Age speakers to be on the same platform as their so-called preachers. I mean, isn’t Buddha a brother and equal to Y’shuaJesus, as is Mohammad. All propets right?

Yup, freedom of speech only applies to non-Believers. They won’t use the Name of the Lord Y’shuaJesus. Well, actually, often they do, but it is in vain. Hum. Isn’t that “hate speech” in itself?

I rant. Sorry. Check out the full article at CNSNews.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Alireza Seyyedian

Alireza Seyyedian is a 37-year-old former Muslim who has been a Christian since 2006. Last year, security forces confiscated his computer during a raid on his apartment. Authorities then discovered video of Alireza’s baptism in Turkey on the computer. In December 2011 he was sentenced to six years in prison, for crimes against national security and propaganda against the regime.

The judge stated that since Alireza was baptized in Turkey, he was trying to express the lack of freedom in Iran and was therefore was propagating against the regime. He was also accused of holding regular meetings with former Muslims and distributing Bibles among youth. They also said he had communication with Zionist satellite TV channels such as Mohabat TV and Radio Mojde and shared worship hymns he had written with them. The verdict also falsely accused him of being a member of the Jesus Only cult.

On March 14, 2012, Alireza was caught seeking to flee Iran for Turkey. He was arrested and transported back to Tehran where he was imprisoned in Evin prison. He was put in Section 350 of the prison, which is where political prisoners are held. That part of the prison is run by VEVAK, the intelligence service that reports to Ayatollah Khameini and is beyond the control of Iran’s prison authorities. According to one report, the conditions of this section of the prison are unsanitary, and each cell is overcrowded with around 30 political prisoners.

Reposted from Voice of the Martyrs

Psalm 7 A model for us while in distress (part four)

Save me from all my pursuers and deliver me, lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it in pieces, with none to deliver. O LORD my God, if I have done this, if there is wrong in my hands, if I have repaid my friend with evil or plundered my enemy without cause, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life to the ground and lay my glory in the dust. from Psalm 7

In the first post on this topic, I stated that David makes several points in his prayer (Psalm 7): We introduced the Psalm and spoke of the first point, that David declares that he takes refuge in G-d—he flees to G-d. Now lets take a look at the next three points in which David implores G-d to save him and points out from whom he should be saved. Then David declares his innocence from wrong doing. Without a breath, he continues with “Okay, IF I did something wrong, then let the enemy take my soul and my life.”

David states that he needs saving from all his pursuers, that he’ll be torn apart by them, and there is none to deliver. No one is available, so G-d must do it? Is that what he means? I think many are available, but David knows that only G-d CAN save, can deliver. In Psalm 7, David cried out to the LORD after someone spoke lies to the king, to destroy David’s relationship with the king. It was false witness, and now king Saul was after David. But David doesn’t specify a particular enemy, only saying “save me from all my pursuers.” His pursuers are defaming him, destroying his reputation. Others may be physically pursuing David to actually destroy his physical life. There is mention by David of the need to be saved, least his soul be torn apart. Spiritual warfare against David by evil in the spiritual realms? It sounds like it to me.

The title to these pages states that Psalm 7 is a model prayer for us while in distress. Many other psalms provide models for us, too. Many of the Psalms are songs of David. They are also our songs. We make them ours. They are the words for our mouthes that fit what we feel in our hearts, but can’t bring to our tongue. We don’t have to be hiding in a cave, along the Salt Sea (also know as the Dead Sea). We don’t have to be pursued by people with clubs and swords or perhaps rifles, either. We can be under a dark blanket of emotional torment that clouds our vision and tears at our inner person, our soul. We must allow ourselves to be like David, fleeing to Y’shuaJesus, taking refuge in Him. We must understand that He, and He alone, is able to save, to deliver. He has delivered us from the greatest evil of all—our spiritual death—we need faith to walk in that revelation.

David points out that he is guiltless of fault against those who pursue him. Y’shua pointed out that before we go into the House of the Lord to make sacrifice, if we find we have wronged someone, we need to leave and make amends. The Apostle Paul tells us we must “examine ourselves” so that we are pure before communion. When the Lord Y’shuaJesus died, and rose, our sin was forgiven. I think of Y’shuaJesus telling His followers who would be the chosen Apostles, to wash each other’s feet. Y’shuaJesus died to wash us clean, but occasionally we must examine ourselves and make amends with our brothers and sisters—washing our feet. We help ourselves, and we help each other in this washing.

In times of calamity, distress, we flee to Y’shuaJesus for refuge, because only He can save us. And we can ask if there is any thing we’ve done to bring this all on us. I think it takes courage and great strength, too, to come to the Lord in prayer saying, like David, if I have repaid my friend with evil or plundered my enemy without cause, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life to the ground and lay my glory in the dust.

Selah. We take a breath to consider these things.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .

Psalm 7—A model prayer for us while in distress (part one)

David and Saul (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite. O LORD my God, in you do I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me, lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it in pieces, with none to deliver. O LORD my God, if I have done this, if there is wrong in my hands, if I have repaid my friend with evil or plundered my enemy without cause, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life to the ground and lay my glory in the dust. Selah Arise, O LORD, in your anger; lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; you have appointed a judgment. Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you; over it return on high. The LORD judges the peoples; judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and according to the integrity that is in me. Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may you establish the righteous– you who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God! My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day. If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword; he has bent and readied his bow; he has prepared for him his deadly weapons, making his arrows fiery shafts. Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies. He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made. His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends. I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.
Psalm 7—ESV

David penned this song as a prayer to our G-d. According to Matthew Henry, David cried out these words in “a devout religious manner unto the Lord, concerning the words or affairs of Cush the Benjamite, that is, of Saul himself, whose barbarous usage of David bespoke him rather a Cushite, or Ethiopian, than a true-born Israelite. Or, more likely, it was some kinsman of Saul named Cush, who was an inveterate enemy to David, misrepresented him to Saul as a traitor, and (which was very needless) exasperated Saul against him, one of those children of men, children of Belial indeed, whom David complains of (1Sa_26:19), that made mischief between him and Saul.”

David makes several points in his prayer:

David declares that he takes refuge in G-d.
He implores G-d to save him and points out from whom he should be saved.
David then declares his innocence from wrongful doing in this particular instance.
He continues with “Okay, IF I did something wrong, then let the enemy take my soul and my life.”
Selah. David takes a breath. We take a breath to let it all soak in.
David then says “Arise, O LORD, in your anger; lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.”
Without another breath, David declares his knowledge of G-d as judge, jury, and executioner.
David shows us that he knows G-d awaits confession and repentance from the guilty.
He also declares that those who do wrongfully, perish by their own doing, at their own hands.
Finally, David wraps up his psaltry cry, saying: “I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.”

Selah.

Lord Bless, Keep, Shine. . .