Separation of Church and State

Christian NASA Head Speaks At Ministry: Left Has Meltdown 

Did you know that The Supreme Court has said a religion need not be based on a belief in the existence of a supreme being? In the 1961 case of Torcaso v. Watkins, the court described “secular humanism” as a religion.

And in 2005, a Federal court deemed “Atheism” a religion.

Read about that decision here:

From wnd.com   written in 2005

Court Rules Atheism a Religion

Decides 1st Amendment protects prison inmate’s right to start study group

A federal court of appeals ruled yesterday that Wisconsin prison officials violated an inmate’s rights because they did not treat atheism as a religion.

“Atheism is [the inmate’s] religion, and the group that he wanted to start was religious in nature even though it expressly rejects a belief in a supreme being,” the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said.

The court decided the inmate’s First Amendment rights were violated because the prison refused to allow him to create a study group for atheists.

Brian Fahling, senior trial attorney for the American Family Association Center for Law & Policy, called the court’s ruling “a sort of Alice in Wonderland jurisprudence.”

“Up is down, and atheism, the antithesis of religion, is religion,” said Fahling.

The Supreme Court has said a religion need not be based on a belief in the existence of a supreme being. In the 1961 case of Torcaso v. Watkins, the court described “secular humanism” as a religion. source

But if a person has the audacity to mention “God” or “Prayer to Him” in public – in this case in front of a Christian ministry by the HEAD of NASA – the reaction of the atheists is anger and, of course, citing the “Wall of Separation of Church and State.”  So, the employees of NASA are attempting to take away a person’s freedom of speech because it will make them look bad – you know, guilt by association.

UNREAL

Let’s get something straight before I post about the Left’s response to the head of NASA (who happens to be a Christian).

You will not find “ Separation of Church and State ” anywhere in our Constitution. The Left will tell you it’s there, but that’s a lie. This lie has been repeated so many times that the average person believes it.

So, where did the saying originate?

Satan is a liar and the father of them. He is also the author of confusion. He took our First Amendment and twisted it, just as he does with God’s Holy Word.

Here is the First Amendment of our Constitution:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

Do you see in the First Amendment the verbiage “ Separation of Church and State? ”

Neither do I.

We don’t see it because it is NOT there. The First Amendment was given its place of prominence because our Founding Fathers wanted to ensure that the government would never establish a “religion” that would be forced upon the American people, and that we would always have freedom of speech.

Then why do we hear this clause so much?

In 1802, a group of Baptist ministers from Danbury, CT, wrote to Thomas Jefferson. They were concerned about the possibility that the State would impose a denomination and their freedom to worship as Baptists might be in jeopardy.

Here is Thomas Jefferson’s response to these CT pastors:

Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists, The Final Letter as sent:

To messers. Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins, & Stephen S. Nelson, a committee of the Danbury Baptist association in the state of Connecticut.

Gentlemen

“The affectionate sentiments of esteem and approbation which you are so good as to express towards me, on behalf of the Danbury Baptist association, give me the highest satisfaction. My duties dictate a faithful and zealous pursuit of the interests of my constituents, & in proportion as they are persuaded of my fidelity to those duties, the discharge of them becomes more and more pleasing.

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.

I reciprocate your kind prayers for the protection & blessing of the common father and creator of man, and tender you for yourselves & your religious association, assurances of my high respect & esteem.” (Emphasis mine)

Th Jefferson
Jan. 1. 1802.

In the past 100 years, the phrase “Wall of Separation between Church and State” (taken from Jefferson’s letter) has been misconstrued to mean that anything to do with Religion must be separate from State or Federal Government.

First of all, as I said before – the phrase “ Separation of Church and State ” is found nowhere in the Constitution. God-hating individuals have repeatedly used this statement (which was to PROTECT the Christians) so many times, that the average person on the street will tell you that this is part of America’s Constitution.

And don’t forget that this man (Jim Bridenstine) was addressing a Christian Ministry – NOT an audience filled with NASA employees!

Brethren, you should print this article out so that you can speak truth to a person who is parroting the lie that this clause is found in our Constitution!

From frc.org

NASA Chief Finds Space for Faith

April 18, 2019

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand the First Amendment. Or maybe, after the spat over a speech by NASA’s Jim Bridenstine, it does. Thanks to the double standards of secularism, public officials can’t even talk about faith without making headlines. It’s no wonder, then, that when the head of America’s space program gave remarks at a Christian ministry, even he had trouble finding signs of intelligence in the criticism that followed.

Capitol Ministries, the organization that Jim has supported for years, is hardly controversial. Nine of the president’s 15 cabinet officials are sponsors of the ministry — whose aim is simple: influencing government with biblical teachings. During his talk, Bridenstine even talked about the importance of that goal and what it means in the context of these times. “I love what Ralph said earlier: We’re not trying to Christianize the U.S. government. We believe in an institutional separation, but we also believe in influence. And that’s a big distinction and an important distinction, and that’s why I love this ministry.”

Jim couldn’t have been more clear: No one in the Trump administration is trying to create a theocracy. They just want the same freedom to bring their personal views to bear on public policy that liberals have. Still, secularists like Business Insider’s Dave Mosher seem intent on dragging Bridenstine through the mud for daring to talk about actual NASA history — like Buzz Aldrin’s communion on the moon and the Apollo 8 astronauts’ Bible reading in orbit.

In a 2,000-word rant about the faith of Trump’s team, Mosher insists that “Some ethics and legal experts outside NASA have expressed concern over Bridenstine’s speech. They believe it ran afoul of the establishment clause of the First Amendment, which outlines a separation of church and state, and might have also violated ethics rules for federal executives.” Quoting people like Virginia Canter of Citizens for Responsible Ethics, Mosher tries to paint Bridenstine as a typical Establishment Clause abuser. “One’s personal beliefs must be respected, but when appearing in an official capacity, you have to adhere to certain ethical standards,” Canter explained. “One is not to give the impression that you are officially endorsing any products or service or enterprise.”

Funny, where was Mosher when Barack Obama was headlining political fundraisers for Planned Parenthood? Or worse, invoking God’s blessing on the abortion giant? Everyone from Hillary Clinton to Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) have not only endorsed the group’s “service” — but funneled hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to it. No one seemed to care when they appeared in their official capacities to preach the gospel of abortion. But put a Christian on the stage from the Trump administration — encouraging something as innocent as prayer — and they’re a walking ethics violation! This is NASA, for crying out loud. What are they worried about? Jim sending astronauts to evangelize the galaxy?

If secularists are upset about Bridenstine’s speech, then they should have been shaking the White House gates over the last administration’s agenda for the space agency. How quickly we forget those shocking comments in 2010 when President Obama told NASA administrator Charles Bolden that his new mission should be “to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations…” If you’re looking for a textbook abuse of public office, I’d say start with the Obama administration. After that, giving a few remarks at a charity function seems like small potatoes.

But hypocrisy is the name of the Democratic game. Like Secretary Mike Pompeo and countless other Trump officials before him, Bridenstine is just the latest target of an intolerant Left whose only goal is purging faith from public life and history. If activists can’t get Christians to stay quiet, then they’ll try to drive them out of government altogether. That will be tough to do in this administration, thanks to the fearless leadership of Trump. If his team has learned anything, it’s how to stand up to bullies. That shouldn’t be hard for a man Jim Bridenstine. He was already light years ahead of the opposition. source

I say WELL DONE to the head of NASA! He is not ashamed of our Lord Jesus before men, and neither will Jesus be ashamed of him before His Father!

“But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:33).

How Can I Be Saved?

A Sermon For Sunday

Shalom b’Yeshua

MARANATHA!

grandmageri422@gmail.com

Articles at grandmageri422.me

I have decided to devote this entire piece to the false Social Justice Gospel.

When I think of heretical teachings in our churches, the Social Justice Gospel is by far the most dangerous to true Christianity. The majority of people who are attracted to this heresy are young and impressionable, and most of all, NOT grounded in the Word of God.

I just wrote an article recently about Taylor University, and how the student body had a complete meltdown when told that Vice President Mike Pence would be coming to speak at the graduation ceremony. If you have not read this piece, I will place it here:

“The Gay Student Who Came Out at Taylor University:  Now You’ll Read the REST of the Story”   <click here to read

The Attributes of God

God is Love. God is Holy. God is Righteous. God is Just.

The student body at Taylor University only sees God as Love. The gay student who “came out” in a letter given to each student was used by Satan. But the students were blinded to the fact that Satan was involved in this at all.

The gay student appealed to their emotions. I am going to post this letter in this article because I think that it is so important for us to see the tactics of the evil one.

Gay student’s Letter:

“Dear members of the Taylor Community

Forgive me. Forgive me for not being completely honest with you. Forgive me for hiding behind my fear and trepidation. Forgive me for the mask I have worn. More often than not I forget 1 Timothy 1:7, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

This is my story.

I have struggled with same sex attraction since middle school, and I thought for a long time that I would be able to change my attractions. I believed that the struggle was just a sin that I was susceptible to and that I could get over it with enough prayer and determination. After coming to college, I tried multiple times to date because I believed that attraction to women would come with a relationship. I tried several times, but eventually realized that the attraction was not going to come to me. That was the point when I finally “came out” to myself.

I realized that I am gay. 

I was not able to change my attractions. So, the question I faced at this junction was, “how does my sexuality play into my faith?” The process has been long and hard, and I have not reached all the conclusions that I want to, nor do I have the answers. I will be the first to tell you that I do not have all the answers! I do, however, have a renewed understanding of God, of struggles, of pain, and of people. There have been points when I have felt like giving up on God and have questioned whether he even exists or not. But through my journey, I have determined to keep living for God and seeking to find out his will for my life. I do not necessarily seek to be happy even though that would be nice. Rather, my focus is searching for the truth and finding joy in truth.

Why am I coming out publicly? 

I do not come out to you, my community, as a way to gain attention — at least not for myself. I do this to help you become aware that same-sex attracted people exist at Taylor, and we all have names and faces. Up to this point you may have only heard anonymous quotes and stories in the Echo…. but do gay people really exist at Taylor? Yes, and I know this because I am one!

I am writing this letter to you all for the sake of people like me. We are your roommates, we are your classmates, we eat in the DC with you, we play football with you, we sing with you in chapel, we pray with you in church, we are your friends, and we are your siblings, but most importantly we are children of God created in his image. Many of these people are scared, as I am, of what will happen if and when they come out.

I am removing my mask, so that you may know the truth about me.

You have probably also heard the quote by CS Lewis: “To love all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give it to no one. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in the casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.”

I love Taylor and I love the people at Taylor. I love you all too much to lock up my heart; in my comfort I am afraid I will lose my chance and ability to be vulnerable and open with the Taylor community. Honestly, I am afraid right now of all the potential fallout, consequences, and backlash. This fear is what has kept me from coming out sooner.

Lastly, but most importantly, my purpose in opening my heart to you is to glorify God. My story, and by default my sexuality, means nothing without God. I hope to glorify God by helping people understand the stories that God has written because each of our stories is precious to God and should be used to shine light on him.

How should you react to all of this new information?

Reflect on this new information. Rethink how you treat people and how you view the issue of sexuality. Reread Scripture and try to look at it with new insights. Listen to people’s stories. Are your words and actions showing that you are safe and open to people sharing their stories with you? Educate yourself on the language surrounding same-sex attraction and the arguments on both sides. Most importantly, respect people and their personal experiences.

None of us have everything figured out. I am just Jeffrey. But together, we are a community, willing to take a position of humility to better understand and hopefully work this out together. There is so much more I want to say, but I will wait for a later time and venue.  Perhaps we can grab coffee sometime.

“The ultimate message of man is not where he stands in the moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” MLK, Jr.

Walking toward Christ together,

Jeffrey Neuhouser”  source

Throughout the letter, I could discern the fingerprints of the evil one and could hear him say, “Did God say?” He was appealing to the emotions of these young students. He was basically saying that he loved God too, but that in this case – God got it wrong.

Jeffrey went on to “tell” the student body how to respond to his letter. There was not one word about how God would respond, and the only Scripture cited in the letter was this – which I considered to be very ironic:

1 Timothy 1:7, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Self-control? The gay student used this part of God’s Word completely out of context. If the student had “Self-Control,” perhaps he would not have acted on his impulses. But he is actually saying that others need “Self-Control” in not condemning his lifestyle.

Here is a Scripture which I think is more to the point:

“Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ” (Colossians 2:8).

Social Justice Gospel (SJG) followers do NOT talk about God’s Holiness, Righteousness or that He is Just. They see God as pure love without any of His other attributes. Obviously, the SJG followers do not understand that we are separated from a Holy, Righteous and Just God because of SIN.

Rewriting God’s Word

Brethren, this is exactly what the SJG false gospel is about. It’s all about feelings and emotions. It’s about accepting sinful behaviors even when God has called such behaviors an abomination to Him!

It is saying that people know better than the Creator of the Universe!

What if you were sitting in church, and a person came in and said, “Hello, I am a Christian adulterer.” Or how about this: “Hello, I am a Christian pedophile.” Or maybe this: “Hello, I am the supervisor at the abortion clinic in town, and I just LOVE God!”

You might say this is ridiculous. But brethren, how are any of these different from a person who insists on practicing homosexuality and yet wants to be an accepted part of a church? There are many people who struggle with same sex attraction, but they know that it is evil and rely on God to help them to not act on their urges.

Danger Ahead

One of the main reasons that I said that SJG is most dangerous to true Christianity is this: I believe that the unsaved world is embracing this apostasy, and together they will persecute TRUE Christians. The Social Justice gospel will be considered TRUE Christianity while Bible believing Christians (you and me) will be called the apostate Christians – the phony Christians – the ones who need to be reeducated.

Just what the devil wants.

Satan knows that his time is short. He is roaming and devouring young minds – minds which do not read the Word of God to keep themselves safe. Minds who believe that they are truly in the faith, when they do NOT know Jesus. It is truly sad to think about these people and what Jesus will say to them:

“And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” (Matthew 7:23).

I do pray that this article finds its way into the hands of those who need to understand about the Social Justice (false) gospel. This is NOT the Gospel of Jesus Christ! It is twisted and changed by the devil himself.

Without the Word of God, people WILL be deceived.

How Can I Be Saved?

A Sermon For Sunday

Shalom b’Yeshua

MARANATHA!

grandmageri422@gmail.com

Articles at grandmageri422.me