[Faith-talk] Fwd: [FBIS Mailing List] FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES

[Linda Mentink]

>Hi all,


I get daily emails from this list during the 
week.  This one is really good.  I don't always 
agree with this man, which is to be expected; 
he's a man, not God.  But most of the time I 
appreciate his information.  Read on.

Blessings,

Linda Mentink



>From: FBIS News Service <fbns at wayoflife.org>
>Subject: [FBIS Mailing List] FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES
>Sender: <fbis-list at fbis.talklist.com>
>X-LR-SENT-TO: mentink at frontiernet.net
>
>FRIDAY CHURCH NEWS NOTES
>February 22, 2008, Volume 9, Issue 8
>
>The Friday Church News Notes is designed for use 
>in churches and is published by Way of Life 
>Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information 
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>
>THE OBAMA FRENZY (Friday Church News Notes, 
>February 29, 2008, www.wayoflife.org 
>fbns at wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The frenzy 
>surrounding Barack Obama's U.S. presidential 
>campaign is a little foretaste of the mindless 
>passion that will accompany the rise of the 
>antichrist when he comes on the scene as a man 
>of peace and a superman problem solver. Speaking 
>in Omaha, Nebraska, Obama said that he and his 
>supporters "will remake the world" (YouTube.com, 
>Feb. 7, 2008). At Obama's appearances women 
>scream and faint and even hardened reporters and 
>Hollywood movie stars are agog. After his 
>appearance in College Park, Maryland, the 
>newspaper said: "You can see it in their 
>flushed-face smiles and hear it in their 
>screams. They say the phenomenon is difficult to 
>describe, but once they experience it they tell 
>their friends, sisters, mothers and daughters, 
>and they come back for more if they can. He did 
>not flinch when women screamed as he was in 
>mid-sentence, and even broke off once to answer 
>a female's cry of 'I love you Obama!' with a 
>reassuring: 'I love you back'" ("Women falling 
>for Obama," News24.com, February 12, 2008). The 
>Associated Press called him "a metaphysical 
>force in American politics" (AP, Feb. 12). Chris 
>Matthews said: "My, I felt this thrill going up 
>my leg. I mean, I don't have that too often" 
>(MSNBC, Feb. 12). Gary Hart said Obama is "the 
>agent of transformation in an age of revolution" 
>(Huffington Post, Feb. 13). Michael Sietzman 
>says, "He empowers us with words and the 
>authentic emotion behind them and people are 
>rushing into the tent to drink that magic water" 
>(Huffington Post, Feb. 14). Danny Westneat said 
>"the Obamapalooza is a once-in-a-lifetime 
>spectacle" (Seattle Times, Feb. 9). Stanley 
>Crouch of the New York Daily News called the 
>Obama campaign "a purification ritual" (Feb. 
>18). ABC Nightline correspondence David Wright 
>said: "Politics doesn't even begin to describe 
>it. A visit to an Obama rally is a pilgrimage" 
>(Newsbusters.org). Christena Weatherspoon said 
>that it was like Obama was "inside her head" and 
>"knows what I want" (Tribune-Chronicle, 
>Youngstown, Ohio, Feb. 19). Actor George Clooney 
>said, "He walks into a room and you want to 
>follow him somewhere, anywhere," and actress 
>Halle Berry said, "I'll do whatever he says to 
>do. I'll collect paper cups off the ground to 
>make his pathway clear" (Lisa Lehrer, Politico, 
>Feb. 20). When New Age billionaire Oprah Winfrey 
>introduced Obama on December 11 in Columbia, 
>South Carolina, she called him "an evolved 
>leader" and said, "We're here to evolve to a 
>higher plane." She said he is a "force for 
>peace" who can break down everything that 
>divides, including race and politics and 
>religion. Obama's wife said he is a leader 
>"who's going to touch our souls" ("Messianic 
>Rhetoric Infuses Obama Rallies, Politico, 
>December 11, 2007). "He which testifieth these 
>things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even 
>so, come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:20).
>
>WHEATON COLLEGE FEATURES LIBERAL PRO-HOMOSEXUAL 
>PASTOR (Friday Church News Notes, February 22, 
>2008, www.wayoflife.org fbns at wayoflife.org, 
>866-295-4143) - On February 19 Jim Wallis spoke 
>at Wheaton College's Center for Applied 
>Christian Ethics. In his recent book The Great 
>Awakening (2008), Wallis says that "civil rights 
>for gay and lesbian people and equal protection 
>under the law for same-sex couples" is "a 
>justice issue" (p. 229). It is difficult to 
>understand why a professing Christian would 
>think that it would be "just" to legalize 
>something the Bible labels a moral abomination. 
>Wallis also says that he supports "civil unions" 
>and "spiritual 'blessings' for gay couples." 
>Wallis claims to be an evangelical but he is 
>very liberal. He is a divorced and remarried 
>pastor; his wife is an ordained Anglican priest; 
>he is opposed to the death penalty and has the 
>objective of ending world poverty; he believes 
>global warming is a proven fact and supports 
>radical environmental policies; he believes that 
>illegal immigrants are "children of God"; he is 
>an ecumenist who praised Pope John Paul II's 
>"spirituality"; he believes that people of 
>non-Christian faiths might be saved (The Great 
>Awakening, pp. 182, 183). He called a 2005 
>interfaith conference at the Washington National 
>Cathedral--that brought together Protestants, 
>Evangelicals, Catholics, Jews, and Muslims--"a 
>spirit-filled moment in history" (p. 126). 
>Wheaton College, though very influential within 
>evangelicalism, departed from the faith of God's Word long ago.
>
>CHURCH ASKS SINGLE PEOPLE TO ABSTAIN FROM SEX 
>FOR 30 DAYS (Friday Church News Notes, February 
>22, 2008, www.wayoflife.org fbns at wayoflife.org, 
>866-295-4143) - Pastor Paul Wirth of Relevant 
>Church in Tampa, Florida, is challenging the 
>single members of his church to "abstain from 
>sex for 30 days" and married members to have sex 
>every day for the 30 days ("Church Says: Take 
>the 30 Day Sex Challenge," TampaBays10.com, Feb. 
>14, 2008). Wirth told television station channel 
>10, "When you're single it's like you're always 
>thinking about it and you're, like, man I'd like 
>to have it as much as possible and sometimes 
>that prevents them from having a great really 
>healthy relationship later on when you do get 
>married. God invented sex and why would the 
>church be afraid to talk about what God 
>invented?" Each Sunday through March 16th the 
>church will, like, deal with a different topic 
>related to sex. The campaign features an 
>advertisement that is very sensual and sexually 
>suggestive. The Associated Press reported that 
>"church member Tim Jones and his fiancée agreed 
>to take on the challenge, though he acknowledges 
>it'll be a tough month" (AP, "For the Love of 
>God," Feb. 19). Jones added, "I think it's worth 
>trying to find out other things about each 
>other." My friends, this is carnal and foolish 
>and wicked. A Bible-believing church does not 
>need a special campaign to teach its members to 
>avoid fornication! That is one of the ABC's of 
>the Christian faith. A fornicator is not 
>supposed to be a church member (1 Corinthians 
>5)! Bible-believing churches have always taught 
>God's people what the Bible says about sexual 
>relations, but there is no place for this type 
>of thing. These campaigns are not holy and are 
>not faithful to God's Word. The Bible never 
>deals with this issue in a shocking or 
>lascivious manner. "Marriage is honourable in 
>all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and 
>adulterers God will judge" (Hebrews 13:4).
>
>EVOLUTIONISTS STIFLE FREE SPEECH (Friday Church 
>News Notes, February 22, 2008, www.wayoflife.org 
>fbns at wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The 
>following is excerpted from "Standard Makes 
>Darwin Unassailable" by Casey Luskin, co-founder 
>of the Intelligent Design and Evolution 
>Awareness Center, Op-Ed, The Ledger, Lakeland, 
>Florida, Feb. 18, 2008: "[The] U.S. National 
>Academy of Sciences (NAS) recently published a 
>booklet, 'Science, Evolution, and Creationism,' 
>similarly proclaiming that '[t]here is no 
>scientific controversy about the basic facts of 
>evolution' because 'no new evidence is likely to 
>alter' it. Contrary to what the NAS asserts, 
>there are fundamental questions among scientists 
>about Darwinian evolution. Darwin didn't know 
>how the cell worked, but modern biochemists have 
>discovered our cells contain a microworld of 
>molecular machines that function like a factory 
>or a miniature city. More than 700 scientists 
>have signed a statement agreeing that the 
>integrated, organized complexity of life is not 
>what we would expect from a random-and-unguided 
>process such as Darwinian evolution (see 
>www.dissentfromdarwin.com). As biochemist 
>Franklin Harold observed in an Oxford University 
>Press monograph, 'there are presently no 
>detailed Darwinian accounts of the evolution of 
>any biochemical or cellular system, only a 
>variety of wishful speculations.' Leading 
>scientists also disagree with the NAS's claim 
>that evolution is "a cornerstone of modern 
>science.' In 2005, NAS member Philip Skell wrote 
>in The Scientist that 'Darwinian evolution ... 
>does not provide a fruitful heuristic in 
>experimental biology ... the claim that it is 
>the cornerstone of modern experimental biology 
>will be met with quiet skepticism from a growing 
>number of scientists.' Š This spring, a 
>documentary will be released featuring Ben 
>Stein, titled 'Expelled,' that recounts the 
>stories of scientists who have experienced 
>persecution of their academic freedom because 
>they questioned evolution. One such scientist is 
>Dr. Richard Sternberg, a biologist formerly at 
>the Smithsonian with two Ph.D.s in evolution, 
>who was harassed and intimidated because he is a 
>skeptic of neo-Darwinism. Another biologist lost 
>her job at George Mason University because she 
>challenged evolution in a classroom. No wonder 
>Darwinists confidently declare there is no 
>debate over evolution: They shut down such 
>debate and prevent it from taking place."
>
>COMMUNITIES ADOPTING DRESS CODES (Friday Church 
>News Notes, February 22, 2008, www.wayoflife.org 
>fbns at wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - Several 
>communities in the United States have adopted a 
>dress code in an attempt to stem the tide of the 
>"anything goes" attitude of society. Auburn 
>Hills, Michigan, might be the next community to 
>adopt such a code. The city council has asked 
>the city attorney to research the codes used by 
>other communities and the legal boundaries of 
>indecency ordinances in preparation for probable 
>action on the matter. City councilman Otis 
>Newkirk was recently appalled and embarrassed 
>when he took his grandchildren to a large mall 
>and witnessed the "low-cut tops and other 
>revealing clothes" worn by young and old alike 
>("Dress Codes May Pull up the Slack in Clothing 
>Styles," OneNewsNow, Feb. 19, 2008). Councilman 
>Henry Knight said they would like to "encourage 
>some reasonable standards of dress," because he 
>and other council members feel that the immodest 
>dress does not reflect well on the community. It 
>is sad that some secular communities recognize 
>the need for modest dress standards, while the 
>average church could not care less about such 
>things. The late Gordon Sears, a godly Bible 
>evangelist and musician, observed: "When the 
>standard of dress is lowered, then the standard 
>of conduct is also lowered. When the standard of 
>conduct is lowered, then the sense of value in 
>God's truth is lowered." To that we say, Amen! 
>The 203-page book Dressing for the Lord (and the 
>two-hour DVD presentation by the same title) 
>deals extensively with this subject. See the 
>online catalog at the http://wayoflife.org.
>
>ATHEIST AGAIN TRIES TO HAVE "UNDER GOD" REMOVED 
>FROM PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE (Friday Church News 
>Notes, February 22, 2008, www.wayoflife.org 
>fbns at wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - Atheist 
>Michael Newdow is again trying to have the 
>phrase "under God" removed from the Pledge of 
>Allegiance. His latest lawsuit was filed in the 
>U.S. District Court for New Hampshire. It should 
>be obvious to anyone that America is indeed not 
>a nation "under God," certainly not the God of 
>the Bible, but if atheism is true there is no 
>meaning to this or any other issue. If atheism 
>is true, life is mere blind chance with no 
>significance, and Newdow and his views are of no 
>more importance than a slug. A few years ago 
>Newdow tried to have the Pledge overturned by 
>California courts, but he was overruled by the 
>Supreme Court, though only on a technicality. 
>The court ruled that he did not have a standing 
>in the case. The Pledge of Allegiance was first 
>printed in 1892, and the words "under God" were 
>added by Congress in 1954 at the request of the 
>Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization.
>
>CHRIST THE MORNING STAR (Friday Church News 
>Notes, February 22, 2008, www.wayoflife.org 
>fbns at wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The 
>following is an excerpt from I.M Haldeman's Ten 
>Sermons on the Second Coming, 1916: "The Coming 
>of Christ is compared to the morning star and 
>the rising sun. He Himself says He is the bright 
>and morning star. The prophet Malachi says He 
>will arise as the sun of righteousness with 
>healing in His wings. The star comes before 
>sunrise. This year, as often before, while in 
>the mountains I took occasion to watch the 
>morning star, and near the hour of dawn. It hung 
>suspended in the upper skies like a lamp of 
>liquid light. Sometimes it seemed like a melting 
>diamond, elongating and ready to drop. Anon, it 
>was as though an angel's tear were ready to fall 
>upon a world of tears. The mountains stood in 
>dim and ghostly outline. The road slipped by 
>white and straight. In the distance I heard the 
>bark of a dog and the clarion note of 
>chanticleer. Then a human figure passed swiftly 
>on and was absorbed in the mysterious vagueness 
>of the hour. It was a time of silence and 
>waiting. Lower and lower sank the star as though 
>an invisible hand were letting out installments 
>of an unseen chain, and then, suddenly, without 
>warning, it dropped behind the etched outline of 
>the mountain's westernmost ridge. There remained 
>a while of continued watching. There was 
>fascination in it. To wait and watch, still 
>watch and note the Coming Change. Presently in 
>the east a lifting as though the sky itself were 
>rising in a strip of light. Then streams of 
>light. Then arrows shooting upward to the 
>zenith, arrows tipped as with flame of fire. 
>After that as though an army with banners of 
>crimson and amethyst and purple were rushing on 
>in an assault of riotous color. Suddenly, a 
>great rim of glowing, scintillating red gold 
>against the sky's edge; and then steadily 
>thrusting upward the wheel of the chariot of day 
>and the sun ascending to his place to reign and 
>rule. Now his beams were upon the eyelids and 
>the laggards awoke-but the star was gone. Our 
>Lord is Coming as the star comes before the hour 
>of sunrise, before the day breaks in its 
>fulness. He is coming quietly and softly for His 
>Church. Those who are His will ascend to meet 
>Him. Then with them He will disappear from the 
>region of the earth. But star rise is prelude to 
>sunrise. As the sun in all His glory He will 
>break upon the view. The light of His splendor 
>will fill the earth. He will come to reign and 
>rule, and all the earth shall behold Him in His 
>majesty and might. He is coming for His Church. He will come with His Church."
>
>CONCLUSION: Friends in Christ, do not be 
>discouraged by any of this. It is God's will 
>that we know the times (1 Ch. 12:32; Mat. 16:3) 
>and that we be as wise as serpents and harmless 
>as doves. These things remind us that the hour 
>is very late, and we need to be ready for the 
>coming of the Lord. Are you sure that you are 
>born again? Are you living for Christ day by 
>day? "And that, knowing the time, that now it is 
>high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our 
>salvation nearer than when we believed. The 
>night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us 
>therefore cast off the works of darkness, and 
>let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk 
>honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and 
>drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, 
>not in strife and envying. But put ye on the 
>Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for 
>the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof" (Rom. 
>13:11-14). This material is sent only to those 
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>Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port 
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>fbns at wayoflife.org. David Cloud is the director 
>of Way of Life Literature and author of the Friday Church News Notes.
>