“Faith in the Lord’s Righteousness

In the Lord I put my trust;
How can you say to my soul,
“Flee as a bird to your mountain”?
For look! The wicked bend their bow,
They make ready their arrow on the string,
That they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart.

If the foundations are destroyed,
What can the righteous do?
The Lord is in His holy temple,
The Lord’s throne is in heaven;
His eyes behold,
His eyelids test the sons of men.
The Lord tests the righteous,
But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates.

Upon the wicked He will rain coals;
Fire and brimstone and a burning wind
Shall be the portion of their cup.
For the Lord is righteous,
He loves righteousness;
His countenance beholds the upright” (Psalm 11).

“But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Recently, I have felt many emotions. After the SCOTUS decision on gay marriage, the first emotion I felt was anger. I believe it was a righteous anger, of which the Lord does not consider sin. Then I became anxious. I thought long and hard about the ramifications of the highest court in our land, condoning this gross sin — a sin which God refers to as an abomination; and my anxiety level soared.

Then I began to turn this over in my mind; thinking of the law of God vs. the law of man. I thought of all of the pastors of Bible believing churches across America, and how these men must know what is coming. Franklin Graham was interviewed, and his words were just what our country needed to hear. I’m sure that the pastors who are troubled by what this court decision will mean for them, were encouraged by Franklin Graham’s words:

“Our nation has a spiritual problem and we need God’s forgiveness and we need to repent of our sins and turn from our sins because I do believe that God’s judgement will come on this nation,” the 62-year-old Graham stated.

“When we read in the Scripture, we see how God judged Israel time and time again, when they would turn their back on Him and begin to worship other gods, foreign gods, and God would bring judgement on Israel. I believe God could bring judgement on America.”

As it is not yet known what kind of legal protections Christian colleges will have, Graham wants those who are willing to stand for traditional marriage to be “prepared” to be persecuted.

“You better be ready and you better be prepared because it’s coming. I think there will be persecution of Christians for our stand,” Graham contends. “I believe the Bible. God loves us, no question about it. So when the president says that ‘#LoveWins,’ yes, God loves us but sin is sin and God has standards. When we violate those standards, any type of sexual relationship outside of a marriage relationship between a man and a woman is a sin against God.”

“I’m disappointed because our government is recognizing sin. This court is endorsing sin. That’s what homosexuality is. It’s a sin against God, just like any other sin. For the court to endorse sin, I am saddened for our country,” Graham added. “We will have to go by what the court says but as far as for me, I will never recognize it in my heart because God gave marriage between a man and a woman. … God gave us marriage and that’s just it, period. God does not change His mind.”

With the court ruling that it is a constitutional right for two individuals of the same sex to be legally married and receive the same government benefits that married heterosexual couples do, Graham argued that the ruling could lead the nation down a slippery slope that eventually results in other kinds of sexual immorality — like polygamy or incest — being deemed constitutional.

“I think our country is the loser because marriage is an institution that God has given. And for us now to give this to same-sex couples, who is to say that in a few years from now a man cannot marry his daughter or two men can marry one woman? Where do you draw the line?” Graham asked. “This is new ground that our country is beginning to enter and I am just concerned about where we head.”

When asked whether he agrees with other conservative pastors and political leaders who are calling for a “civil disobedience” over gay marriage, Graham said he would favor such an action depending on whether the court’s ruling is enforced in a way that requires pastors and churches to participate in same-sex weddings.

“I think we have to wait and see what the ruling is and how it is going to be interpreted,” Graham replied. “If pastors are going to be forced to provide marriage services for gay couples, I certainly am not going to do it because I would partaking in a sin against God. I just can’t do that.”

Although he disagrees with the homosexual lifestyle, Graham added that he loves people who struggle with same-sex attraction “enough to warn them” of God’s impending judgment of their behavior.

“Do I wish ill to gay couples? No, I don’t. But I want them to know the truth — that they are living a sinful life and a sinful relationship and God is going to judge sin one day and the Bible says that sinners will be separated from him in a place the Bible calls hell,” Graham explained. “I love gay couples enough to warn them that God is going to judge one day and I want them to repent and believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ so that they will be saved.” [1]

Then a beautiful emotion flooded my soul. God’s peace came into my heart.

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27).

Do not be troubled. Do not be afraid. Trust in the One who made the stars and calls them each by name. Trust in the One who loves us so much, that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to reconcile us to Him forever. Trust that He is fulfilling His Holy Word and prophecies. Trust Him completely.

PERSECUTION COMING

It is quite amazing how quickly everything is happening. But it is God’s timing and that has to be best. So, what are we to do? We are to stand on the Word of God, even if that means that we will be jailed. Think of our brethren whom have been martyred in various parts of the world. Just think of those final seconds, when they knew that they were going to die. I believe that just as Stephen looked up to heaven before he was stoned to death, and he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God, that the Lord has been with His people, perhaps each in a different way; but always showing them that He is with them.

When we are incarcerated, we will pray for God to tell us what to say and how to act. Brethren, He did not bring us this far to just leave us now! He is our Father and He adores His children.

We are coming down to the last stretch. We are blessed beyond measure. Our home is not here. Our home is in heaven, and we will soon be there, my precious brothers and sisters.

We must pray for the ones who persecute us. They are watching us closely. I want to have the sweet fragrance of our Lord all about me. I want people to look at me and wonder how I can go through the persecution and still love those who hate me. We are His representatives on this earth, while we are here. Ask Him to use you in whatever way He wishes.

Talk to God every day; all day. Ask Him for His peace, if you begin to be anxious. Ask Him for His love for others. I believe that this is what Jesus meant, when he spoke about turning the other cheek.

Remember that God is in control. He is bringing about events which will finally lead to His reign upon this earth. And don’t forget that we will reign with Him!

Sometimes, when I am feeling anxious, I just say the name of Jesus, over and over. He brings His peace to me when I say His name.

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust” (Psalm 91: 1-2).

Shalom b’Yeshua (Peace in Jesus)

MARANATHA!

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[1] http://www.christianpost.com/news/franklin-graham-warns-christians-to-be-prepared-for-persecution-following-supreme-court-marriage-ruling-its-coming-and-so-is-gods-judgement-upon-america-140962/