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Archives for February 2015

Ask yourself — is Love my main motive?

Friday, February 20, 2015, 12:50 pm | Randy Thomasson

redcarbumpersticker
I saw this car in a parking lot and just had to take a picture. The bumper sticker “Love God / Love People” can and should be the singular goal of people who claim (like on the cap behind the window) that “Christ is King.”

The older I get, the more I question my motivations. Am I here on earth to serve myself, or to serve my Maker and His created people?

For if my self-satisfaction relies on my own comfort and pleasure, isn’t this the very definition of selfish? And if my values are merely “traditional” and not my heart beating hard with love, how quickly my values can be ignored under pressure or diminish over time.

Think about. Every baby is born selfish. This is why each one of us must teach ourselves God’s principle of love, unless it was drummed into our heads by wise parents (which is exceptional).

I’ve tried to define love Biblically as “giving God’s goodness.” One of my favorite Bible commentators, Adam Clarke, who was a protégé of John Welsey, defined love as simply “pleasing God” (how different from the love definitions of Hollywood, the world, and our own flesh!).

What’s more, I’m remembering that “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15) means a God-approved truth with a God-approved motive. And I remind myself that my act of love for others is not dependent on people recognizing it as love or even their reaction to my love. Most of all, I’m holding fast to the reality that God defines Truth, but I decide whether to love with the right motive followed by the right action.

So if, like me, you find yourself deficient in love, just sincerely confess and repent of it before God. Then you’ll bear fruit in life and get good things done because your mind is refocused to love people on God’s terms. Don’t think it’s too hard, because you were created for this!

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’’’
Matthew 22:37-39 NKJV

The love of our neighbor springs from the love of God as its source; is found in the love of God as its principle, pattern, and end; and the love of God is found in the love of our neighbor, as its effect, representation, and infallible mark. …This is the religion of Jesus! How happy would Society be, were these two plain, rational precepts properly observed! Love Me, and love thy Fellows! Be unutterably happy in me, and be in perfect peace, unanimity, and love, among yourselves. Great fountain and dispenser of love! fill thy creation with this sacred principle, for his sake who died for the salvation of mankind!
“Prince of Commentators” Adam Clarke on Matthew 22:39

Mormon or not, you can’t mix “LGBT rights” and religious freedom

Tuesday, February 3, 2015, 6:19 pm | Randy Thomasson

mormonlgbtnewsconference

60-second podcast: “Who’s moving the perverse ‘LGBT’ agenda forward?

Our office has gotten a lot of emails — mostly from Mormons — upset about our opposition to the Mormon hierarchy’s new mix of “LGBT rights” and religious freedom.

But I ask you, what if a Protestant Christian church said the lesbian-gay-bisexual-transsexual agenda should be the law? That business owners and property owners who oppose these unnatural perversities must abandon their values?

You would be appalled and would oppose this, wouldn’t you?

And what if a Catholic church said that homosexual-bisexual-transsexual values must be in the law so that everyone who doesn’t agree is criminal if they stand up for their moral values?

You would speak out against this today!

Now what if any religion, any church, any seemingly-moral entity — even the one to which you “belonged” — decided to support the “LGBT” political agenda but dressed it up in a “religious freedom” package? You should immediately be suspicious of what they’re saying. Because when religious freedom is “mixed” with perversity-affirming laws, religious freedom is either several curtailed or eliminated.

Consider if there were no laws requiring acceptance of homosexuality, bisexuality, and cross-dressing/”sex changes.” 100% of business and property owners would have freedom of conscience on these matters.

But if there were a “non-discrimination law” forcing acceptance of homosexuality, bisexuality, and transsexuality upon business and property owners, everyone loses their moral right to object.

Now, assume that joined with the “LGBT” law is a well-crafted, super-strong religious exemption allowing adherents of organized religion to be exempt. Perhaps this would protect as many as 20% or 30% — but only the religious folks. But don’t bet on it — liberal politicians and liberal judges are committed to their goal of stuffing religious freedom into the confining walls of a church building.

It’s a fact that religious-freedom exemptions aren’t working to protect people of faith from the tyrannical “LGBT” agenda. All over the country, there’s religious freedom in every state constitution and even religious exemptions in some of the laws promoting the homosexual-bisexual-transsexual agenda. But those laws aren’t protecting bakers, florists, photographers, and marriage chapel owners who disagree with homosexual “marriage,” are they?

I have Mormon friends and vendors, and love them all. And despite my detractors’ claims, I’ve read the “religious freedom + lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender rights” statement of the Mormon Church hierarchy. Sadly, it’s ignorant at best and deceptive at worst.

Hopefully you already know that advancing the unnatural, unhealthy, unbiblical, and tyrannical homosexual-bisexual-transsexual agenda is a huge problem in our culture and goes against the Bible too.

Confirming their unprincipled act is the Mormon leaders’ own admission that they “compromised” with homosexual activists – see the last paragraph, which reads (my highlights in bold):

The Church’s approach represents a desire to bring people together to encourage mutually respectful dialogue. Sister Marriott stressed, “We are at our best as fellow citizens when the push-pull of different viewpoints, freely and thoroughly aired in national debate, leads ultimately to compromise and resolution and we move on as a nation, stronger than before.”

What changed at the Mormon Church’s Jan. 27 news conference, which simultaneously called for both religious freedom and laws that permit homosexuals, bisexuals, and transsexuals to dominate others? The Mormon Church has supported religious freedom for years — it’s historically been in their self-interest. What’s new and being pushed forward is the Mormon Church’s championing of the “lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender” agenda.

Mormon Church spokesman Dallin Oaks said it (my highlights in bold):

Today, state legislatures across the nation are being asked to strengthen laws related to LGBT issues in the interest of ensuring fair access to housing and employment. The leadership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is on record as favoring such measures.

We call on local, state and the federal government to serve all of their people by passing legislation that protects vital religious freedoms for individuals, families, churches and other faith groups while also protecting the rights of our LGBT citizens in such areas as housing, employment and public accommodation in hotels, restaurants and transportation—protections which are not available in many parts of the country.

Do you see what’s happened? The homosexual activists groups have been lobbying the Mormon Church for several years, and the Mormon hierarchy has given in. In fact, they caved in 2009 when they first supported homosexual-bisexual-transsexual laws in Salt Lake City. And then, in 2013, Mormon leaders supported openly homosexual Boy Scouts in scout troops and on camping trips.

Stop and think. Whenever you advance the cause of evil, even a little bit, evil is winning. So if someone says, “local, state, and federal governments should all pass laws forcing homosexual-bisexual-transsexual values on every business owner and every property owner, except for the religious folks” – watch out!

Because when religious freedom clashes in court with immoral laws, religious freedom has either been very narrowly defined or ignored. So when the Mormon Church tries to mix the “LGBT” agenda with religious freedom, you know what’s going to win and what’s going to lose. What the Mormon Church has done is antithetical to a biblical church, especially when Mormon leaders themselves admit they’ve “compromised” with homosexual activists.

TAKE ACTION: Please call the Mormon headquarters in Salt Lake City at 801-240-1000. Tell them you want to leave a message for church leaders: “Homosexual and transsexual behavior are unbiblical. Please repent of your promotion of these immoral and harmful behaviors.” And when the receptionist says, “The news conference was about upholding religious freedom,” just tell them, “Don’t give that canned answer. The Mormon church has always stood for religious freedom. What’s new is that you’re now in favor of forcing homosexual-bisexual-transsexual agenda laws upon the majority of the public, which is a terrible role model for children.”

And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves
before men, 
but God knows your hearts. For what is highly
esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.”
Jesus Christ in Luke 16:15