Can you hear it? Regardless of your political persuasion or convictions there appears to be agreement on this one thing “don’t confuse me with the facts.” This is a dangerous mindset brewing among otherwise intelligent and responsible people, including some Christians. Violence in all its forms should be condemned by Christians and justice should prevail based upon criminal evidence. Yet, after months of violence in cities across the U.S., U.S. Capitol and elsewhere, the drum beat continues that all of our current ills fall on those whose voices are conveniently silenced. Who really are these perpetrators? Some say they are domestic terrorists ascribing blame without defining what domestic terrrorism means based upon their own agency lexicon of terms. Some say these are the ones we see every night in Portland threatening lives and destroying property. Haven’t we seen this before in history? It begins with ridicule, and moves to marginalization, silencing, more destabilizing chaos and does not end with loss of life in biblical proportions.
Followers of Christ faced persecution well before Our Lord was nailed to the cross taking on our sin to free us from the bondage of our own rebellion against His word and His Truth. Now, Persecution of Christians worldwide is up 60% from last year according to Open Doors USA, and persecution in the U.S. is taking on an insidious resemblance to pre-WWII, with some government agencies and officials taking up war tactics again with the drum beat of marginalization, ridicule and outright persecution. Who are these people needing a “cleansing”? This time it is within our own house not across the oceans. It is on our doorstep!
What is the answer to avoid this disaster? The Bible says:
“Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law.” Jeremiah 6:19
So how are we to respond? The Bible gives us a blueprint for being ready and standing firm against this day. We have only to look at the prophet Nehemiah who recognized first hand that the walls of Jerusalem were not capable of defending the children of Israel who had turned their backs on keeping defenses strong. He called the subject matter experts of his day together and gave them each the blueprint to follow to rebuild.
Not unlike the days of Nehemiah, the same is true for Christians today. We must rebuild our spiritual, emotional, mental and physical walls to stand against the persecution of today to Glorify the One who is worthy above all names. Here’s the good news, Jesus gave us the pathway and you can do this right now and right where He has placed you whether at home, in your home church, or within your city network. God is calling us to be READY for such a time as this!
Here are 10 “Battle Ready” steps Nehemiah took as persecution of the children of Israel proliferated and the threat of annihilation appeared to be at their doorstep. When the walls of Jerusalem were broken and breached, God called Nehemiah and guided him to:
UNDERSTAND the threat situation in their spiritual and physical “battle space”
ASSESS their level of being “battle ready” to face the threat
FORM agreements with God’s people to forge a “battle ready” response
EVALUATE their “battle assets” realistically to respond God’s way
DEVELOP a “battle strategy” to respond together in unity
IDENTIFY the “battle ready” experts and who would do what by when
STRENGTHEN their “battle assets” to respond together based upon His word
TRAIN their “battle force” to a measurable effective 24/7 readiness level
PRACTICE “battle tactics” by responding together in one accord
CELEBRATE God’s “battle victories” together!
Twenty years ago, God gave these simple principles found in the Book of Nehemiah, to Christian leaders to bring the spiritual, emotional, mental and physical biblical blueprint forward once again assisting Christians to self-organize, self-mobilize according to God’s governance to respond together for such a time as this!
ReadyChristian - for family leaders
ReadyChurch - for church leaders (including organizing and mobilizing home churches)
ReadyCity - citywide network leaders
Make sure you sign up for CEN ALERTS/Advisories to maintain a vigilant awareness of current active threats with tips on how to pray, care and share the love of Christ with those who are hurting, alone and are burdened by the chaos in these increasingly uncertain times.
For Interviews with CEN Founder and President Mary Marr a Christian radio broadcaster and subject matter expert on faith-based domestic terrorism and how the church needs to respond biblically together contact: john.phelps@christianemergencynetwork.net
No comments:
Post a Comment