Why We Are Where We Are Part 24

The Wake-up Herald

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 fulfill the lusts thereof. Romans 13:11-14

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   Robert McCurry, Editor & Publisher 
May 12, 2012 
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Why We Are Where We Are
Part 24

Responsibility for the ‘same-sex marriage’ debacle

Obama’s recent birth control mandate which requires that employees of religiously affiliated institutions like schools and hospitals, but not churches, receive free contraception in their health plans, raised the ire of Roman Catholic bishops, evangelicals, other conservatives and the Republican presidential candidates; a subject that threatened to become a potent weapon for the November elections. They argue that a government mandate forcing any religious group to act against its beliefs is a threat to all religions.

This mandate has now been eclipsed by the ‘same-sex marriage’ debacle. First by Vice-President Joe Biden, then President Barak Obama have gone public to please their supporters in declaring their support for gay marriage. No president in American history has dared make such a statement.

Obama's announcement Wednesday, May 9, 2012, that he supports gay marriage boosted the hopes of gay rights groups around the world that other leaders will follow his example, though opponents denounced his switch as a shameless appeal for votes.

Obama said his opinions had evolved and he now believes same-sex couples should have the right to wed.

“At a certain point, I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married,” Obama said.

"[Michelle and I are] both practicing Christians … when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing himself on our behalf, but it's also the Golden Rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated. And I think that's what we try to impart to our kids. And that's what motivates me as president, and I figure the most consistent I can be in being true to those precepts, the better I'll be as a as a dad and a husband and hopefully the better I'll be as president," Obama said after affirming to ABC News that "same-sex couples should be able to get married."

Franklin Graham, son of Billy Graham, said the president was defying God’s will by changing his opinion on the issue.

“President Obama has, in my view, shaken his fist at the same God who created and defined marriage. It grieves me that our president would now affirm same-sex marriage, though I believe it grieves God even more,” Graham said in a statement.

“This is a sad day for America. May God help us,” he said.

Leaders of the nation's two largest religious denominations are expressing distress and sadness at President Barack Obama's newly announced support of “gay marriages.”

New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, who heads the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, says Obama's remarks "undermine the institution of marriage, the very cornerstone of our society." He adds, "The people of this country, especially our children, deserve better."

Bryant Wright, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, predicted that voters will hold Obama accountable for what Wright calls "a calculated, politically expedient decision that completely ignores the biblical foundation of marriage."

One of the largest Pentecostal denominations in the United States has also officially announced its opposition to President Obama's stance on same-sex marriage. The Assemblies of God USA, a fellowship with more than 3 million members, sent out a statement on Thursday addressing the president's recent remarks endorsing gay marriage. "The Bible clearly teaches that marriage should be a life-long commitment between one man and one woman," said Dr. George O. Wood, general superintendent of the Assemblies. "Although it has become popular to quote Scripture grossly out of context to serve a personal or political agenda, it still doesn't change what God's Word clearly states."

As commendable as these expressed positions are, they may be too little too late. The ‘same-sex marriage’ debacle is only one of America’s evolving marriage debacles that can be traced to the silence and passivity of the pastors and churches.  

It really is a new day. For the first time in America history, the executive branch of government is controled by two professed pro-sodomites--President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. And top pro-sodomite Democrats are also showing their colors.

(CNSNews.com May 10, 2012) – House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Thursday that her Catholic faith “compels” her to “be against discrimination of any kind” and thus for same-sex marriage.

“My religion has, compels me–and I love it for it–to be against discrimination of any kind in our country, and I consider this a form of discrimination. I think it’s unconstitutional on top of that.”

Pelosi spoke glowingly of the comments President Barack Obama made Wednesday when he said he supported same-sex marriage.

“So I think that yesterday was a great day for America because the president in a very personal, as well as presidential way, made history, and hopefully this will bring people together on the issue,” Pelosi said.

Pelosi also said that the president “went a long way” in shortening the difference between the “inevitable and the inconceivable” of the introduction of same-sex “marriage.”

“It’s a matter of time. It’s all about time. And on these issues, what is inevitable to some of us is inconceivable to others,” she said. “And what we want to do is shorten the difference between the inevitable and the inconceivable,” she continued. “And I think the president went a long way in doing that yesterday.”

July 26, 2011 1:27PM – Christianity Today

Poll: Majority of Americans Say Same-Sex Relations Are OK:

Recent data suggests that Americans for the first time since 1973, a minority says homosexual relations are 'always wrong.'

In 1991, three-in-four Americans said homosexual relations are always wrong. By the end of the decade, this dropped to just six-in-ten. The survey indicates a rise in acceptance of homosexuality during the following ten years, culminating in 2010 when only 46 percent of Americans said same-sex relations are ‘always wrong’.

This is the first time in the 37 years of polling that those in opposition to same sex relations represented a minority. Most people who do not consider same-sex sexual relations ‘always wrong’ say that such behavior is ‘never wrong.’ In the 1970s, only 11 to 15 percent of the public said same-sex relations never wrong. Today, 43 percent hold this view, a near- statistical tie for the percentage who say it is always wrong.

Not surprisingly, beliefs about sexual morality dovetail with views on same-sex marriage. In 1988, the GSS first asked if people supported gay marriage. Only 12 percent indicated support, the same percentage that said same-sex sexual relations were never wrong. Jump to 2004, when the GSS next asked about gay marriage: three-in-ten supported same-sex marriage and said homosexuality was never wrong.

As views of sexual morality have shifted, so have views of same-sex marriage. According to many recent surveys, about half of Americans support gay marriage.

God’s ordained and orderly way of marriage

God created Adam and Eve at the same time. Eve was created in Adam (Gen 2:26-28). God took Eve out of the side of Adam and builded a woman and presented her to Adam (Gen 2:18, 21-24). They were one flesh. It was Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve. God made no spares for Adam and Eve in the event they later decided, for whatever reason, they wanted to dissolve the marriage and go their separate ways. There were no disillusion clauses in this marriage. It was one man for one woman and one woman for one man. It was a marriage “until death do us part.” This was God’s ideal original building block for marriage.

But in less than two thousand years man had abandoned God’s ideal original building block and marriage was perverted and in shambles. They were “marrying and giving in marriage.” Marriage, divorce, and remarriage were a revolving door. As a result of the breakdown of marriage and the family, the earth was “filled with violence” (Gen 6:11, 13). They eventually passed the point of no return. God’s ideal original building block had been so perverted and broken that God in essence said, “I’ve had enough. I’m not going to repair this mess. I’m going to destroy the whole earth.” And He did. But not until after Noah, a righteous man, preached repentance for one hundred twenty years. The people refused to hear, believe, and repent. One day God shut the door to the ark, and a world that refused to listen didn’t even know what happened “until God’s judgment came and took them all away” (Matt 24:39).

It’s about to happen again!

Wake-up, Pastors! Wake-up, Christians!

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The Wake-Up Herald is published by Robert McCurry. The publication is designed to exalt the true God of the Bible, the Lord Jesus Christ, and inform, inspire, and challenge its readers regarding biblical truth and real-life issues. The contents are the sole responsibility of Robert McCurry and do not represent or speak for or on behalf of any other person or group. There is no subscription charge. The publication is a ministry of faith dependent on the contributions of its readers. Contributions are not tax-deductible. Send all correspondence to: Robert McCurry,605 Moore Rd, Newnan, GA 30263 or herbap@aol.com Remove? Send reply with “remove” in Subject line