We Are Not Saved By a Creed!

by J. R. Miller

That which makes one a Christian is not . . . the acceptance of Christ's teaching, the uniting with His church, the adoption of His morals, the espousing of His cause—but the receiving of Him as our personal Savior, the entering into a covenant of eternal friendship with Him as our Lord and Master.

We are not saved by a creed which gathers up the essence of the truth about Christ's person and work, in a few golden sentences. We must have the Christ Himself, whom the creed holds forth, in His radiant beauty and grace.

A good many people think that being a Christian is . . . to pray a few moments morning and evening, to read a daily chapter or two in the Bible, and to attend church on Sundays. These duties are important as means of grace—but they are not vital religion.

True religion is living out the principles of Christianity in one's ordinary week-day life. It is getting the Bible and the prayers and the services—into thought and act and character!

We must not cut our lives in two and call one part secular, governing it by one set of principles—and regarding the other part as sacred, to be controlled by another set of rules. All of life is to be made religious, in the sense that everything is to be done in such a way as to please God, under the direction of His counsel. We have just as much religion, as we get into our week—your life, and not a whit more!

Trembling At God's Word

by Charles Spurgeon, "Trembling at the Word of the Lord"

There are men abroad nowadays—I grieve to say some of them in the ministry—who take the Bible, not that it may judge them but that they may judge it. Their judgment weighs in its balances the wisdom of God Himself. They talk exceeding proudly and their arrogance exalts itself. O Friends, I know not how you feel about the prevailing skepticism of the age but I am heart-sick of it! I shun the place where I am likely to hear the utterances of men who do not tremble at God’s Word. I turn away from the multitude of books which advocate doubt and error.

The evil is too painful for me. If I could be content to be an Ishmaelite and have my hand against every man, I might seek this company, for here I find every faculty of my being called to warfare. But as I love peace, it sickens and saddens me to meet with the enemies of my soul. If I knew that my mother’s name would be defamed in certain company, I would keep out of it. If I knew that my father’s character would be trailed in the mire, I would travel far not to hear a sound so offensive. I could wish to be deaf and blind rather than hear or read the modern falsehoods which, at this time, so often wound my spirit.

I feel more and more a tenderness for the Truth of God of the same sort as I would feel for the good name of my wife or my mother. I wish the modern revilers would have some compassion upon us old Believers to whom their talk is such torture. They might keep their doubts for home consumption. When a man was going to swear, a wise person bade him wait till he was further away from the town so that nobody might hear him—it might cause grief to a Christian ear. When a man has anything to say against the eternal Truth of God, let him speak it to those who love to hear it—to his mates and admirers. But as for us, we are determined we will not be tortured by this kind of thing—we cannot endure it. And we will not remain among those who bespatter us with it.

“Oh but surely you are open to conviction?” they say. We are open to no conviction that shall be contrary to the Truth of God that has saved us from going down to the pit. We are open to no conviction that shall rob us of our eternal hope and of our glorying in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. We do not deliberate, for we have decided. To be forever holding the Truth of God as though it might yet turn out to be a lie were to lose all the comfort of it. To be forever prepared to desert our Lord and Master to follow some brand new philosopher would be perpetual disloyalty. No, we have not come thus far at a guess. We have known our Lord and His Truth for these forty years and it is not maybe, or maybe not, with us now. We neither speculate nor hesitate. But we know whom we have believed and by His Grace we will cleave to Him in life and in death. . .

[Those who tremble] are people who do believe that there is a Word of God. There are plenty of persons who profess and call themselves Christians and yet do not believe that this sacred Book is the very Word of God. Say that it is inspired and they answer, “So is the Koran and so are the Vedas.” They talk after this fashion—“This is the religious book of the ancient Hebrew nation. A very respectable book it is, but infallible, certainly not—the very Word of God, certainly not.”

Well, then, we distinctly part company with such talkers. We can have no sort of fellowship with them in any measure or degree with regard to the things of God. They are to us as heathen men and publicans. If we are to come under the head of those that tremble at God’s Word, we must believe that there is a Word of the Lord to tremble at, as we do most assuredly believe, let others talk as they may.

Following Paul's Arguments

DECLARATIVE STATEMENT (frequently misunderstood and misinterpreted): "The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 5:20-21)
RHETORICAL QUESTION: "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?" (Romans 6:1)
STRONG DENIAL: "God forbid!" (Romans 6:2)
EXPLANATION OF THE STATEMENT: "How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace." (Romans 6:2-14)

DECLARATIVE STATEMENT (frequently misunderstood and misinterpreted): "For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace." (Romans 6:14)
RHETORICAL QUESTION: "Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?" (Romans 6:15)
STRONG DENIAL: "God forbid!" (Romans 6:15)
EXPLANATION OF THE STATEMENT: "Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter." (Romans 6:16-7:6)

DECLARATIVE STATEMENT (frequently misunderstood and misinterpreted): "For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death." (Romans 7:5)
RHETORICAL QUESTION: "What shall we say then? Is the Law sin?" (Romans 7:7)
STRONG DENIAL: "God forbid!" (Romans 7:7)
EXPLANATION OF THE STATEMENT: "On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, 'YOU SHALL NOT COVET.' But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me. So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good." (Romans 7:7-12)

DECLARATIVE STATEMENT (frequently misunderstood and misinterpreted): "for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me." (Romans 7:11)
RHETORICAL QUESTION: "Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me?" (Romans 7:13)
STRONG DENIAL: "God forbid!" (Romans 7:13)
EXPLANATION OF THE STATEMENT: "Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful. For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him." (Romans 7:13-8:9)

Context, context, context, brothers and sisters! Our personal experiences must never interpret Scripture. Paul was not addressing whether Christians will sin or not. Romans 7:14-25 has nothing to do with the believer. The context informs us of as much, and an examination of the Greek words used solidifies that fact beyond the shadow of a doubt. Typically, those who want to hold to Romans 7:14-25 speaking of whether Christians will sin or not do so in order to find excuses for their sin. They do not do so from an honest, exegetical study of the passages and context (immediate, surrounding, and canonical), because such will not support them.

Paul makes four declarative statements, realizes that people are going to misunderstand what he has just said, asks a rhetorical question of them, provides a strong denial, and then continues on with an explanation to answer his initial statement. Paul is following a pattern here. He does not answer his rhetorical question in Romans 7:13 with the remainder of verse 13 and then switch gears to address something that has nothing to do with the course he has set, only to return to it again with chapter 8. Forcing that kind of interpretation upon the text is called eisegesis; it is reading into the text what the individual wants to get out of it.

If you understand what Paul is getting at with Romans 7:7-12, then you will have no problem whatsoever understanding the statements made in Romans 7:15 and 7:19. When you examine the Greek words used in these two verses, and the fact they are used in reverse order from each other, it becomes even more apparent what is actually being said and what it applies to. The context of Romans 7:14-25 is first found in Romans 7:7-12, and then in Romans 7:13-8:9. The surrounding context outside of Romans 7:7-25 contradicts the false notion that Romans 7:14-25 is speaking about the Christian's struggle with sin. The passage has nothing to do with that and is not speaking about it. Everything else Paul wrote (as well as everywhere else in Scripture) contradicts such a false notion, too. Your feelings and opinions do not matter here. Facts trump feelings and opinions every time. Everyone can have their own opinion about something, but once fact enters and comes into play, it is no longer an opinion and any opinion contrary to the fact is in error. It is as simple as that.

Paul said, "I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, 'YOU SHALL NOT COVET.' But sin, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead" (Romans 7:7-8). So, the Law said, "Do not covet," but all Paul could do, in trying to obey the Law, was covet. So when Paul says, "for I am not practicing what I would like to do [not coveting], but I am doing the very thing I hate [coveting]" (Romans 7:15), and "For the good that I want [not coveting], I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want [coveting]" (Romans 7:19), it becomes apparent what he is speaking about. He is talking about a man under the conviction of the Law, because a man free from the Law (Romans 8:2) and dead to sin (Romans 6:11) cannot live the life expressed in Romans 7:14-25 and especially by verses 15 and 19. It is impossible! In verse 15, the two Greek words are found in this order: prasso and poieo. In verse 19, the two Greek words are found in the reverse: poieo and prasso. Poieo is to purpose to do something. Prasso is to habitually practice something. So in verse 15, Paul said, "I am not habitually practicing what I would like to do, but I am purposing to do the very thing I hate." In verse 19, Paul said the complete reverse: "For the good that I want, I do not purpose to do, but I habitually practice the very evil that I do not want." In other words, a combination of the statements made in both verses is this: "I am not habitually practicing what I would like to do, but I habitually practice the very evil that I do not want." This is not a Christian!

Brothers and sisters, stow your feelings and opinions and read/study the Bible for what it actually says. Forget your pre-suppositions, forget how you have been raised, forget what you have been taught, and allow Scripture to speak for itself through the teachings of the Holy Spirit. Do not claim the Holy Spirit is teaching you something that is contrary and contradictory to what the Scriptures actually say, because then you are making the Holy Spirit out to be schizophrenic. The Holy Spirit has taught you no such things. You are attributing your own pre-suppositions, feelings, opinions, how you were raised, what you were taught, and what you want to find in the Scriptures to the Holy Spirit. Everybody makes the same claim, and all these claims cannot be true simultaneously. All can be wrong, but only one can be true. Most people attributing things to the Holy Spirit are liars and are self-deceived. Leave yourself at the door and honestly seek for the Holy Spirit to teach you the truths of God's Word. Only when you are entirely open to the possibility that you could be wrong and are willing to conform to the truth will that truth be revealed to you. For example: if you want to believe you evolved from a monkey in contradiction to the evidence, then what would be the point in the Holy Spirit trying to teach you the truth when you have already made your mind up and are unwilling to admit your errors and allow for corrections? The Holy Spirit does not convict/convince two believers of two contrary and contradictory things. Either one of you is wrong and the other is right, or both of you are wrong; but you cannot both be right. The Holy Spirit wants to teach all of us, but most people close themselves off from His desire to teach them. They are too stubborn and proud to admit their errors and allow for change.

Just because all the commentaries agree does not make them right. The works of men are not infallible. Preachers and theologians are not infallible. Only the Word of God is infallible: all the time, every time. If you honestly study something in depth and all the commentaries disagree with you, it does not mean they are right and you are wrong, but it also does not mean you are right and they are wrong. It depends on much. I do not agree on the assessment most commentaries make on Romans 7:14-25, and I do not agree on the assessment most commentaries make on Galatians 6:6. In both cases the majority are wrong. I am sorry, but that is the reality. No matter how godly you are, you can arrive at wrong conclusions in your studies if you are not extremely careful, and this applies to the great, godly men of the past, too. You have to pay very close attention to what is being said, and you have to compare Scripture with Scripture and let Scripture be its own best interpreter. Remember that the English translation is just that—a translation. It is not perfect—in any of the versions. Not even the KJV.

When you are going to study the Word of God, leave yourself and all your baggage—your pre-suppositions, feelings, opinions, ideas, how you were raised, and what you were taught—at the door. If you want to see what happens when you do not do this, read Ezekiel 14:4. Read the passage at hand—in context—and compare it with the rest of Scripture. Re-read it several times and seek—honestly—for the Holy Spirit to reveal its true meaning. You cannot make heads nor tails out of any passage of Scripture apart from the Holy Spirit. He must be your Guide. When you do not leave yourself at the door with all your baggage, you push the Holy Spirit aside and make yourself and your own "intuition" your guide. Do not blame the Holy Spirit for something that is entirely your fault. Be like the Bereans. 2 Timothy 2:15 has never been more true: "Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth."

A Christian Is One Who Follows Christ

by J. R. Miller, "Young People's Problems"

You must receive Christ as your Master and Lord.A Christian is one who follows Christ. This means the surrender of the whole life to Him. The heart must be given up. There can be no Christian life, without love to Jesus. Jesus demands the first place in the affections of His followers. If anyone loves father or mother, brother or sister, wife or child, more than Him—he is not worthy of Jesus, and cannot be His disciple.

But the most perfect obedience, if the heart is not in it, would not make one a Christian. We might devote our life and strength to Christian work, toiling unweariedly in the service of the church, giving our money lavishly for the advancement of Christianity or for the relief of suffering—and yet not be Christians. Love for Christ must be the motive at the heart of all our work for Christ.b"Do you love Me?" is the test.

But the heart draws the whole life after it. If we truly love Jesus—we will obey Jesus. "If you love Me—keep My commandments." "You are My friends—if you do whatever I command you."

We cannot accept Christ as our Savior—and not at the same time accept Him as our Lord and Master. We must begin at once to obey Him. Our obedience must be without reserve, without condition, without question. It must also be cheerful and glad-hearted—not compulsory, reluctant, or constrained.

Christians are soldiers of Christ—and the soldier's first duty is to obey. Whether the will of Christ is made known to us in His Word, through our own conscience, or in providence —we should always promptly and cheerfully accept and obey. It may not be always easy—it may be very hard and costly; but when the will of our Master is made known, if we are His followers—we can only obey, and our obedience should be sweet with love.

We love Him—because He first loved us. We know Him—because He first calls us. Christ is ours—and we are Christ's. Being a Christian is living out His same life of love, obedience, surrender, and service, through all the days.

As Christians, we are to live out the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians: "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."

True faith will make us more gentle, more patient, more unselfish. A Christian life is a new Christ-life lived out in this world—we are to be Christ to others!

The heart of the Christian should be a well of living water, a fount of holy and blessed influences, whose streams flow in all directions—carrying comfort, cheer, encouragement, help, and gladness to every other life they reach. Mere orthodoxy of belief does not make one a Christian, nor does attention to church rituals and rules. A Christian is one in whom the life of Christ pulses, and the love of Christ glows and burns!

God's Arrows Never Miss the Mark

by Charles Spurgeon, from Treasury of David

"God is a righteous judge—and God is angry with the wicked every day!" Psalm 7:11.

God not only detests sin, but is angry with those who continue to indulge in it. We have no ignorant or indifferent God to deal with; He can be angry, nay, He is angry today and every day with you—you ungodly and impenitent sinners! The best day that ever dawns on a sinner, brings a curse with it. From the beginning of the year even to its ending, there is not an hour in which God's oven is not hot, and burning in readiness for the wicked, who shall be as stubble before Him!

"If he does not repent, He will sharpen His sword; He bends His bow and makes it ready!" Psalm 7:12.
What blows are those which will be dealt by that long-uplifted omnipotent arm! God's sword has been sharpening upon the revolving stone of our daily wickedness, and if we will not repent, it will speedily cut us in pieces! Turn or burn is the sinner's only alternative.

"He also prepares for Himself instruments of death; He makes His arrows into fiery shafts!" Psalm 7:13.

Even now God's thirsty arrow longs to wet itself with the blood of the ungodly! His bow is bent, His aim is taken, His arrow is fitted to the string—and what, O sinner, if the arrow should be let fly at you even now! Remember, God's arrows never miss the mark, and are, every one of them, "instruments of death." Judgment may tarry, but it will not come too late. The Greek proverb says, "The mill of God grinds slowly—but grinds to powder!"

"The sharpening of God's sword is but to give a keener edge, that it may cut the deeper. When God's sword is sharpened—it is to cut; and when God's bow is bent—it is to kill! Woe be to that man who is God's target!" William Secker

"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God!" Hebrews 10:31

Homosexual Tactics: Anything Goes!

from Chapter 118 of the Pro-Life Activist's Encyclopedia. I have added a few of my own comments in orange.

"You can forget about trying to persuade the masses that homosexuality is a good thing. But if only you can get them to think that it is just another thing, with a shrug of their shoulders, then your battle for legal and social rights is virtually won."

-Marshall K. Kirk and Erastes Pill, The Overhauling of Straight America

[Is that not what we see taking place today? People shrug their shoulders as if homosexuality is just "another thing."]

What the Anti-Lifers Say

"The religious extremists will make us fight every step of the way. But they've already lost. We have made gay and lesbian rights a legitimate cause for people in public life."

-Rand Schrader, openly homosexual appointee to the Los Angeles Municipal Court¹

We Gays are a gentle but angry people. The government and the Right Wing—and especially the reactionary churches—are guilty of AIDS genocide, because they will not identify with and support our reasonable demands.

Since our lives are at stake, we are entirely justified in employing whatever tactics we choose. No matter what we do, nothing is worse than the genocide being committed against us!

[Excuse me?!? We are guilty of AIDS genocide? Did we force you to commit anal sex with other men? No, I did not think so. Your own actions render you responsible for the AIDS genocide that has befallen you due to the nature of your actions. "...men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error" (Rom. 1:27). You are further responsible for AIDS genocide by deliberately passing the virus to unsuspecting individuals; even maliciously so.]

The Three Primary Homosexual Strategies

Full Equality? Homosexual activists say that all they want is full equality with "straights." Chapter 117, "Homosexual Objectives," reveals that the truth is far different. There really is a "homosexual agenda," despite the homosexual sneers that such a term will inevitably elicit, and it demands much more than equality: It demands special privileges that no sane person would grant to any other special interest group. The primary thinkers of the "gay rights" movement are thinking of a true social revolution that will result in what they call a "queer planet."

In a nutshell, homosexuals want to be declared a special and privileged class of people that is free of all responsibility for its actions.

In order to achieve this ultimate goal, the homosexuals depend upon three primary strategies (as distinct from tactics, which are day-to-day methods); absolute privacy, the victim status, and force of law, as described in the following paragraphs.

Strategy 1: Absolute Privacy. The first (and most dominant) of the homosexual strategies is the achievement of absolute privacy.

Privacy is essential for all immoral activities, particularly those involving illicit sex. Homosexuality, adultery, incest, fornication, child molestation, rape, abortion, and pornography. If the public learns about the true nature of the homosexuals, and about their repulsive activities (and the extreme dangers and degree of irresponsibility that they represent), promiscuous homosexuals would be forced to return en masse to the well-deserved position of outcast and anathema that they traditionally have occupied.

Strategy 2: Victim Status. The second general strategy employed by homosexual activists is the victim status. The only way that the homosexuals can advance their agenda is to plead for tolerance and take advantage of sympathy generated by constant reference to imaginary "atrocities" committed against "gays" throughout history. They therefore appeal to the "rescuer" in all of us.

Ironically, the AIDS epidemic contributed more to the perception of this victim status than any other influence in the history of the homosexual movement. The biggest oppressor of the homosexual is himself.

The background and mechanics of the victim status are discussed in Chapter 9 of Volume I.

Strategy 3: Force of Law. The homosexuals have stated that they want nothing less than full equality with heterosexuals. However, their tactics have shown that they are now taking advantage of public sympathy to gain not only equality, but a privileged position in society, essentially protected from all responsibility and criticism by the full force of law.

There are literally thousands of examples that illustrate how homosexuals use their "special rights" to force others to accept their perversions. Many of these examples are outlined in Chapter 9 of Volume I, "The Victim Status."

Typical episodes (both individual and institutional) are described later in this chapter.

The "Mainstream" Tactics of the Homosexuals

Brains or Hate?
Homosexuals as a class appear to be aristocratic and smart; however, this is a bright and shallow forced intelligence. It is desperation, hate and anger masquerading as brains. As with the Neofeminists, a large portion of the homosexual's constructive brain power seems preoccupied with thinking up cute acronyms for their organizations: DORIS (Defending Our Rights in the Streets); SQUASH (Super Queers United Against Savage Heterosexuals); VOGUE (Valiant Out Gays United in Energy); GHOST (Grand Homosexual Organization to Stop Televangelists); LABIA (Lesbians and Bisexuals in Action); QUEST (Queers Undertaking Exquisite and Symbolic Transformation); and GRINCH (Gay Retaliation for Inexcusable Negligence and Criminal Homophobia), among many others.²

Out of necessity, the homosexuals have become excellent strategists, as demonstrated by their many victories in the legal and public arenas. However, their high-visibility members, including the North American Man-Boy Love Association (NAMBLA), RATS (Radical Activist Truth Squad), the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgences, Dykes on Bikes, organized transvestites and transsexuals, and the many homosexual child molesters, are beginning to attract a little too much public attention. Therefore, the "Gay Napoleons" are mapping out a new, more sedate, but very sophisticated campaign whose objective is to subtly "desensitize" the American public to their hideous practices.

The Overall Strategy
The homosexuals' new strategy is very compactly and clearly laid out in the "marching orders" of the movement, The Overhauling of Straight America, written by homosexuals Marshall K. Kirk and Erastes Pill. This comprehensive homosexual strategy was first outlined in a condensed version in Volume 8, Number 11 of Christopher Street, and the October and November 1987 issues of Guide Magazine, a homosexual monthly.

This material served as the heart of a book that the authors eventually published, and represents an absolute treasure chest of information for those Christian activists who are fighting the radical homosexual agenda. It is said that generals and attorneys fervently wish that their opponents would write a book.

The so-called "gay rights" movement has fulfilled this wish by making vital information on their strategies available to the public. This is a grave (and hopefully fatal) strategic error.

The seven primary tactics used by the modern homosexual-rights movement are listed below in approximate order of their importance. Keep in mind the difference between strategies—the overall, long-term plan—and tactics, which are day-to-day methods used to support the strategies. The anti-"gay rights" activist must be intimately familiar with all of these tactics, because he will encounter all of them and will have them used against him.

In order to effectively counter and defeat the tactics used by homosexuals, every Christian who actively opposes the homosexual agenda must know the enemy and how he operates.

The Seven Primary Homosexual-Rights Tactics

1. Exploit the victim status
2. Use the Neoliberal media
3. Confuse and neutralize the churches
4. Slander and stereotype Christians
5. Bait and switch (hide true nature)
6. Intimidate through violence and vandalism
7. Abuse the political process

The extracts that are listed in the following paragraphs are copied verbatim from Kirk and Pill's The Overhauling of Straight America, and are followed by comments and examples that analyze the tactics and show just how successful the homosexual's campaign has been.

[In order to read the rest and educate yourself on the Homosexual Agenda, please go to the source at Homosexual Tactics: Anything Goes! Every individual, especially every Christian, should be informed on this issue. Our future depends on it.] [As I said in a previous blog entry, homosexuals are domestic terrorists guilty of hate speech and hate crimes. Chapters 17 and 18 of the Pro-Life Activist's Encyclopedia demonstrate this beyond the shadow of a doubt.]

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¹ Rand Schrader, an openly homosexual appointee to the Los Angeles Municipal Court. Quoted in Betina Boxall. "Gay Rights Gain Political Forum Outside Closet." The Oregonian, September 29, 1992, page A3.
² Alexander S. Chee. "Queer Nation: A Queer Nationalism." The Lavender Network, November 1990, page 15.

The Creation Account vs. Homosexuality

Homosexuality is not normal. Period. Regardless of how much homosexuals attempt to fight for recognition and acceptance, homosexuality is not an acceptable practice and should be recognized as nothing more than a perversion of human sexuality, along with incest, bestiality, pedophilia, and necrophilia. Certain homosexual individuals are self-deceived into thinking they are Christians (when they are anything but), attempting to use the Bible in support of their sinful practices. We have already dealt with the 8 verses that condemn homosexuality, so in this blog entry we will deal with the created order and how God intended it to be, as well as a few other eisegetical excuses homosexuals come up with.

The phrase "meet for" (KJV) in Genesis 2:18 comes from two Hebrew words. The first, #5048, is a preposition indicating before, in front of, opposite. The second, #3509.1, is a marker of comparison: as, like; a marker of similarity or correspondence. The phrase "meet for" in the Hebrew indicates something that is both similar yet different; something that was similar to Adam yet completely different from him. As other translations render it (more accurately, I might add), this is what was "suitable" for not only Adam but for every man—woman. Every animal in the animal kingdom had its suitable pair, something that was similar but different. The similarity was in its kind. The difference was in its make up. Adam saw that every animal had its appropriate pair while he did not. Thus, God said "It is not good for man to be alone." In creating the "suitable" helper for Adam, He created woman. Woman is similar to Adam, being of the same species, but different from him, being a woman and having womanly parts rather than manly parts. This difference would be key to the mandate that God would give to the two of them, which is the same mandate given to all mankind—"Be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28).

Two homosexuals, be it two males or two females, cannot fulfill this mandate. They will never produce any progeny. They are doomed to perish in their own generation. They will never produce a subsequent generation. The genital parts of both man and woman were designed differently yet complimentary—they fit together perfectly, like a plug and an outlet or a nut and a bolt. You will get nowhere fast trying to put two plugs together or two outlets together or two nuts together or two bolts together. They are, by design, perfectly fit for each other; perfectly matched. With two homosexuals, whether two males or two females, there is no difference. It is a mirrored image. Everything is similar. There is no difference.

Not only are there 8 negative verses that condemn homosexuality as immoral and perverse, but there are hundreds of positive verses that condone heterosexuality as the only correct and proper means for sexual union. The Bible constantly refers to "husband" and "wife," as well as "father" and "mother." Two homosexual males adopting a child is not a true or correct family dynamic because the child does not have a mother. Two homosexual females adopting a child is not a true or correct family dynamic because the child does not have a father. A child needs both father and mother for a true and correct family dynamic. The family was defined by God, as was marriage, and it requires a father and a mother—a man and a woman. Here are some (of hundreds) affirming verses for proper human relationships (pay close attention to the truths they teach: father, mother; husband, wife; procreation):

• "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." Genesis 2:24
• "Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house, your children like olive plants around your table." Psalm 128:3
• "Hear, my son, your father's instruction And do not forsake your mother's teaching; Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck." Proverbs 1:8-9
• "Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth. As a loving hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; Be exhilarated always with her love." Proverbs 5:18-19
• "My son, observe the commandment of your father And do not forsake the teaching of your mother; Bind them continually on your heart; Tie them around your neck. When you walk about, they will guide you; When you sleep, they will watch over you; And when you awake, they will talk to you. For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life." Proverbs 6:20-23
• "An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life. She looks for wool and flax And works with her hands in delight. She is like merchant ships; She brings her food from afar. She rises also while it is still night And gives food to her household And portions to her maidens. She considers a field and buys it; From her earnings she plants a vineyard. She girds herself with strength And makes her arms strong. She senses that her gain is good; Her lamp does not go out at night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hands grasp the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor, And she stretches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of the snow for her household, For all her household are clothed with scarlet. She makes coverings for herself; Her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates, When he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them, And supplies belts to the tradesmen. Strength and dignity are her clothing, And she smiles at the future. She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying: 'Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.' Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her the product of her hands, And let her works praise her in the gates." Proverbs 31:10-31
• "This is another thing you do: you cover the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping and with groaning, because He no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. Yet you say, 'For what reason?' Because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit. And what did that one do while he was seeking a godly offspring? Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth. For I hate divorce," says the LORD, the God of Israel, "and him who covers his garment with wrong," says the LORD of hosts. "So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously." Malachi 2:13-16 
• "And said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?" Matthew 19:5
• "But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh." Mark 10:6-8
• "Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, 'The two shall become one flesh.'" 1 Corinthians 6:16
• "But because of immoralities, each man is to have his own wife, and each woman is to have her own husband." 1 Corinthians 7:2
• "Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh." Ephesians 5:22-31
• "In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external—braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God. ... You husbands in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way, as with someone weaker, since she is a woman; and show her honor as a fellow heir of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered." 1 Peter 3:1-4, 7

Homosexuals attempt to tell us that the ancient world knew nothing of homosexuality and that it is a modern idea or concept. We have already looked at several quotes from ancient Christian and non-Christian philosophers, historians, theologians, commentators, etc., from the first 5 centuries, which have proven the homosexuals wrong yet again. But for further emphasis and total and utter destruction of their fallacious lies, let us examine what the Qu'ran has to say about homosexuality, which was written around 632 A.D. Surah 7:80-81 reads: "We also (sent) Lut: he said to his people: Do ye commit lewdness such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you? For ye practise your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds." Surah 26:165-166 reads: "Of all the creatures in the world, will ye approach males, and leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? Nay, ye are a people transgressing (all limits)!" Surah 29:28-29 reads: "And (remember) Lut: behold, he said to his people: 'Ye do commit lewdness, such as no people in Creation (ever) committed before you. Do ye indeed approach men, and cut off the highway?—and practise wickedness (even) in your councils?' But his people gave no answer but this: they said: 'Bring us the Wrath of Allah if thou tellest the truth.'" Surah 11:77-79 reveals their understanding of Genesis 19: "When Our Messengers came to Lut, he was grieved on their account and felt himself powerless (to protect) them. He said: 'This is a distressful day.' And his people came rushing towards him, and they had been long in the habit of practising abominations. He said: 'O my people! here are my daughters: they are purer for you (if ye marry)! Now fear Allah, and cover me not with disgrace about my guests! Is there not among you a single right-minded man?' They said: 'Well dost thou know we have no need of thy daughters: indeed thou knowest quite well what we want!'" In 632 A.D., they clearly understood the sin of the Sodomites in Genesis 19 to be that of homosexuality.

Homosexuals will quote from Ezekiel 16:49 in an attempt to tell us what the sin of Sodom supposedly was. However, the ironic thing here is, like Satan quoting Scripture to Jesus, if the homosexuals would continue their quote into the next verse, retaining the context, they would refute themselves. When Satan quoted from Scripture, he stopped short of the verse that spelled out his own condemnation. The same is true of the homosexuals, whose father is the devil. Sodom was destroyed for committing abominations (tow'ebah), the very same term used to describe homosexual relationships in the holiness code (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13). Tow'ebah properly refers to something morally disgusting. Homosexuals are unregenerate, hard-hearted, God-hating, non-Christian deviants incapable of discerning spiritual matters who constantly seek to gratify their flesh and condone the perversions they engage in.

There is no such thing as a "loving, committed, monogamous" homosexual relationship. Such a description is an oxy-moron. It is not loving to encourage someone to continue in sinful behaviour just to gratify the desires of the flesh. So-called "love" between homosexuals is not identical to the love demonstrated between heterosexuals. Their argument for "love" has nothing to do with love, but is centered entirely on their desire to have sex with one another. Homosexuals are known for their many, and fleeting, sexual encounters; even when engaged in so-called "loving, committed, monogamous" relationships. Furthermore, homosexuals are domestic terrorists. They are the ones guilty of hate speech and hate crimes. If they do not get their way, they threaten people and attack them, doing unseemly things to them just as the Sodomites wanted to do to Lot's visitors. The Bible informs us that even after they were all struck with blindness, they still continued to grope for the door, wearing themselves out; exhausting themselves. Why? When you are blind, you cannot participate in gang rape because you cannot see who it is you might be raping, and these men were after Lot's guests. If you are blind, you can still engage in sexual activity. Any sane person in their right mind immediately struck with blindness would stop what they were doing because the realization that they were now blind would have kicked in. God goes so far as to inform us that even after they were blinded, these men did not stop. Homosexuals today bear the same character, attacking churches and doing things to its members that no rational human being would ever do to another human being. Homosexuality makes people irrational in their thoughts and in their behaviour.

The same pathetic and disgusting arguments used to try and gain support for homosexuality are also being used for every other sexual deviation and perversion. Inter-generational "love" is using the same arguments. People wanting to commit incest or bestiality are using the same arguments. "I love my dog and my dog loves me. Why shouldn't we be happy? We're not hurting anyone else. Why can't we have sex together?" These arguments are designed to overthrow morality in general. In fact, you can use the homosexual arguments to make a case for not condemning murderers, as well. "You can't hold him responsible for his actions, judge. He was born this way. He can't help it. If you look over his past, you can see it was always there. It progressed slowly, but it was always there. When he was 5, he caught a frog. Look what he eventually did to that frog. When he was 8, look what he did to the neighbour's cat. When he was 13..... So you see, judge, he can't help his actions. He was born this way. It's in his genes to be a murderer." The only truth valid here is that, yes, all men were born in sin. All men were born that way—sinful. All men cannot help but be sinful and commit sin. But, Jesus died for that sin so that if we would repent (turn from and forsake that sin) and trust in Him, we would be free from those sins. Even though those sins may continue to tempt us and haunt us, we no longer need to give in to those temptations because God has provided for us a way out. Like Paul said, "Such were (past tense) some of you." Some of you were homosexual by your actions, but you are no longer. If you desire to be free from you sinful behaviour, when you turn from that sin and forsake it, coming to the Lord Jesus to save you from it, He will set you free from it. For you to embrace your sin and attempt to call yourself a Christian, you are only lying to yourself. Today is the day of salvation.