“All we like sheep have gone astray.” (Isaiah 53:6)
The devil wants you silenced! If you are not going to repeat his mantra, then you better shut up or you will be threatened and possibly hurt or even killed.
Sadly, many devout Christians who love God with all their heart, comply, believing that the proper response of the Church to the social challenges facing us today should be “spiritual and not political” as if they somehow must be mutually exclusive. (They’re not.)
Some believe it is not fitting for Christians to enter the fray and speak up, but didn’t Paul say, “And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak,”?
Speaking up and speaking out is a spiritual act. The confession of our mouth is a fundamental Christian duty of high importance. And it was never meant to be confined to safe houses (aka churches).
We are in a spiritual war and as the Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 10:4-5, “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down imaginations (reasonings or arguments) and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”
So let me ask you...
How does one cast down an argument or a reasoning? If the argument is put forth for example that men should compete in women’s sports, share women’s bathrooms and have babies, is the Christian response to simply be disgusted and then hope that maybe those making that argument will show up in church on Sunday so they can hear the gospel (assuming of course that the church is actually preaching the gospel)?
Is it enough to simply pray for those lost souls? Pray for them yes, but then go out to where they are and reason with them.
See anything wrong in this picture?
Think me crazy?
Consider Paul in Acts 17:16-17 “Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. (A social evil prevalent at the time) Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there.”
So much for confining your remarks to the choir.
Paul absolutely went into pagan society, confronted it out in the open and successfully brought those pagan ideologies into captivity, rendering them powerless in the minds of many in that day.
That bold stand in the marketplace got him invited to Mars Hill (Areopagus) where he had a larger audience in the public square, resulting in some converts on the spot. Many of today’s Christians would have turned down that same offer due to the dubious reputation of the venue.
One of the comments in response to my previous blog (Lady Justice is No Lady and Has No Blindfold) respectfully suggested that I offered the wrong solution and argued that “the early Church ministered under very harsh conditions imposed by the brutal oppressive Roman Empire and seemed to understand this principle well (of prayer and preaching) and deliberately avoided any form of resistance or political activism even when subjected to persecution.”
I sincerely appreciated her comment and thanked her for the inspiration for this blog because I thought many may also have this mindset.
Let me begin with the obvious...
Rome was not a constitutional republic.
It was not a “government of the people, by the people, for the people”.
ILLUSTRATION COURTESY CORBIS
In America at least, our form of government requires (or strongly encourages) citizens to be involved. We are not serfs or slaves. We are equals and with that comes great responsibility for the governing of this great nation. And that responsibility is on all of us to some extent. If the lambs of the church fall silent, the wolves of the world will have their way!
Secondly, the Roman Empire was very harsh as was stated, but to whom? Rome was a polytheistic state. They didn’t care how many gods you had. It was in some ways, a first amendment country – it had freedom of religion. Look at Ephesus or any ancient culture in the empire. They had many gods and were not persecuted for that.
Why then were so many Christians slaughtered and fed to the lions for sport? Even Paul faced that threat. (1 Corinthians 15:32) It wasn’t because he was an apostle of a “new” religion. Rome didn’t care about that.
In ancient Rome, you could have Jesus as your savior and heaven as your home. That didn’t concern Roman leadership. You could argue over doctrine and believe that Jesus healed and that was completely benign to Rome.
There was a red line however...
You had to confess on pain of death that “Caesar is Lord”. As long as you confessed that, you were fine, and not in danger of the wrath of Rome. That was not too different from the days of Nazi Germany where you were expected to swear allegiance to the Fuhrer with “Heil Hitler” which means “Hail Hitler” and was the same salutation (salute) demanded by Caesar (Hail Caesar).
Now here’s the rub...
The reason Christians were mercilessly slaughtered was because THEY SPOKE UP...
They said the unpardonable thing... They said there is another king!
They declared instead that JESUS IS LORD!
That was a political statement!
And for that they were torn apart by wild beasts and killed in many other cruel ways.
The Roman Empire Christians didn’t stay confined to their Sunday morning church services and tell a joke, read a Scripture, tell some stories, take up an offering and then have a potluck dinner.
They were world changers who challenged the culture of the day, who spoke up in the public arena and paid the ultimate price knowingly and willingly, so that one day the cries of their shed blood would call a world to repentance.
Back in 2004, I invited Ken Blackwell, the former Ohio Secretary of State and Republican nominee for governor to speak at one of my events. It was either my Selling Among Wolves seminar or our Taking Back The Gates of Commerce event in Columbus, Ohio. (Not sure which one)
He got up and gave a speech I shall never forget. He spoke about a man named Telemachus who was the 5th century monk who on January 1st, 404 AD ended the Roman Gladiatorial Games. Here’s what happened...
One day he journeyed to the fabled city of Rome and saw a large crowd making its way to the Colosseum. Curious, he followed the crowd which swelled to an estimated 80,000 fans. The air was electric with anticipation and that was before they discovered electricity!
He watched as the gladiators came forth, stand before the Emperor, and say, ‘We who are about to die salute you.’
That’s when the awful realization hit him that these men were going to fight to the death for the entertainment of the crowds. Realizing how wrong this socially accepted
sport was, he challenged both the Emperor and the gladiators.
He cried out, ‘In the Name of Christ, stop!’
Take a second and visualize that scene. Imagine someone running onto the field of a crowded, cheering, blood-thirsty crowd in a filled to capacity stadium and then challenging the Emperor and the gladiators!
Talk about courage! (We need more of that TODAY!)
His voice was naturally lost in the tumult of the great Colosseum…It was after all a festive occasion and a holiday.
And when the games began… the crowds saw this scrawny little figure making his way out to the gladiators and saying, over and over again, ‘In the Name of Christ, stop!’
The crowd thought it was part of the entertainment, sort of like those rodeo clowns meant to distract angry bulls when the cowboy gets thrown off, and at first they were amused.
But then, when they realized it wasn’t part of the show, they grew belligerent and angry…
He kept on pleading with the gladiators, ‘In the Name of Christ, stop!’ Unmoved by his pleading, one of them plunged his sword into his body. And as this courageous little monk fell to the sand of the arena in death, his last words were, ‘In the Name of Christ, stop!’
This man had only two things to offer...
(1) His courage to face the emperor and the gladiators unarmed, and (2) HIS VOICE.
Suddenly, a strange thing happened.
The gladiators stood looking at this tiny form lying and dying in the sand and a silence fell over the Colosseum. Then, someplace up in the upper tiers, an individual made his way to an exit and left, and the others began to follow.
This once roaring crowd was stunned, perhaps shamed, maybe even convicted by the Holy Spirit, and it brought them to dead silence, as everyone left the Colosseum shaken and speechless.
The empty Roman Colosseum, Rome, Italy
That was the last battle to the death between gladiators in the Roman Colosseum. Never again did anyone kill, (or did men kill each other) for the entertainment of the crowd…
One small unknown man who loved God, had the courage and conviction to speak up in the public forum, with the simple admonition... ‘In the Name of Christ, stop!’
It was Christians, down through the centuries that spoke up against societal evils, following the example of Telemachus. Men like Lord William Bentinck who brought about in India the end of the barbaric practice known as “sati” or “widow burning” which is where when a husband died, they would build a big stack of wood and burn his body and then bind her and throw her alive on top of the funeral pyre.
It was a Christian (William Wilberforce) who fought with his mind and words, while no doubt also on his knees, and brought to an end, the practice of slavery in the British Empire.
There’s always been a brave remnant in every generation who understood that the silence of the lambs only emboldens the wolves.
Let us be silent no more.
Thank you for reading this. You are a blessing to me and Judy!
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Well stated. Mark Hankins has stated, “never run at your giant with your mouth closed”. Silence, right now, is not an option.
Hi James… I love that quote from Mark Hankins! Thanks for sharing!
Excellent.
Thank you Shari!
Again – on fire and on target!
Thank you Tim!
Keep up the good work! Many people are getting their voice. Let’s remember who were the first to go out an fight in the Revolutionary War. It was the pastors who spoke from the pulpit, and then went out.
I don’t believe violence is good, but we have got to stand up for righteousness. We have allowed the enemy to come in under the guise of tolerance. We thought if we would just allow them to do what they wanted, we the Church, would be left alone. The opposite has become true. Our voice has been taken, and we have taken on the World’s ways.
Let’s remember 2 Chronicles 7: 13-14. The situation of the World is our problem and our responsibility.
Can we do as Daniel did in Daniel 9? Repent and remind God of His Covenant?
Thank you Carla… The more I delve into this topic, the more I come to understand about the power of the word. Naturally that is true of God’s Word, but it is also true of the spoken word, or even the written word. As has been said, “the pen is mightier than the sword”.
Our local community college is hosting a drag show on Good Friday. When some of us wrote to the Dean he switched it to a karaoke. I wonder where the churches are because I’ve let most of them know. We live in a small county in Southeastern Arizona. We ARE being attacked. The ROT from Bisbee is spreading like a cancer.
Hi Kara… It is sad that so many are silent, but let me encourage you with this thought… When a building is on fire, it only takes one person to sound the alarm and perhaps save the people inside. Thanks for commenting!
Michael thank you so much for standing up. Taking authority. May God spread this word far.
May you be blessed for standing in the gap for many.
Thank you for commenting Nadia!
Very good sir. We’ll done.
Thank you Andy!
Yes, we need more courageous men and women of faith to start speaking up. I believe the next generation is counting on us to do just that. Evil prevails when good people are silenced. Thank you, Mr. Pink.
You are right Grace. We must be courageous, stand up, show up, and speak up. Thanks for commenting!
Well said again Bro. Michael;
Silent no more. In the name of CHRIST stop.
Happy Resurrection Day.
Love it Ken! Thanks for sharing!
Why did your constitutional rights get stepped on and how do you fix this ?
What is the difference between US citizen and an American ?
One has unalienable rights and the other doesn’t.
One is a party to the constitution and bill of rights and the other only has civil rights and privileges.
If you are a U.S. Citizen you don’t have unalienable rights. You have privileges & civil rights.
1939 Hague v CIO, 307 US. “The first American Nationals are owed the Bill of
Rights as they always have been. U.S. citizens are NOT owed the Bill of Rights.
“The first eight amendments have uniformly been held not to be protected from
state action by the privilege and immunities clause of the 14th Amendment.”
True freedom starts with you correcting all the errors you’ve made your entire life marking the U.S. Citizen box. How to restore your American political status.
Visuals * proofs * breakdown of the steps to freedom
Join me on the journey to freedom as an American State National
Dallas, TX May 12-14, 2023
https://www.1776live.us/
The 14th amendment did indeed do violence to the other amendments. Thanks for posting!
I’m going to be the dissenter here, I guess. I am in no way saying Christians should be silent, but my concern is we are turning Christianity into a political movement. We have a contemporary gospel in America. I think that’s our problem. We haven’t addressed sin from the pulpit and in our individual lives. It crept into our churches and is demanding to stay there undisturbed . John wrote to churches in Revelation about this. We don’t resemble the Bride of Christ and that’s our problem. Truth. The Bible says if MY people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray, and turn from THEIR wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven and heal their land. We haven’t done that. We’ve looked for a man to lift us up.
I watched religious leaders and influencers make Trump become the face of a Christianity. I guess if he is the face of our religious freedom in America, if he goes down, we all do. Then there is pressure to keep him relevant to the Body of Christ. But Jesus is the head of the church. Not man. I never put Trump on the pedestal so it’s not hard for me to see this differently. I don’t see him as a spokesperson for my faith, but a man who has made calculated decisions that best suited his agenda, and that meant appealing to Christians for votes. He did a lot of good things in office and God holds the hearts of kings and leaders in his hands and uses them for his purpose. That doesn’t mean we have to ignore the bad decisions he made. I watched him stand by an do nothing when George Floyd was murdered. I watched him stand by and do nothing when the Capitol was raided and I saw no outrage from religious leaders when this happened, but rather a justification for his actions. If you disagree with Trump then somehow it’s a reflection of your commitment to Jesus and righteousness. I don’t see it that way. I agree with your prospective state of this world, but not that Trump is political prisoner. He’s being held accountable, finally. We’d say the same if Clinton or Biden were held accountable for their illegal activities. This post is in response to this article and the previous one.
Thanks Svea for posting your dissenting point of view. In my next post, I intend to redefine the conversation so as not to be about right vs left or Republican vs Democrat. It’s not about Trump either. I don’t know anyone who sees Trump as the spokesperson for their faith. That would be a bit absurd, and I think a stretch to suggest it.
I don’t doubt your commitment to Jesus even though you feel Trump deserves to be, and in fact is being, “held accountable”. Accountable for what? Please tell me the crime he needs to held accountable for? And if you don’t mind, tell me what he was supposed to do when George Floyd died at the hands of police?
As for the “outrage” you feel religious leaders should have had when radical provocateurs, (many of whom were BLM and Antifa bussed in to cause trouble) rioted and many Trump supporters followed their lead and were let in to the Capital to take pictures and be orderly. The outrage should be directed at the massive fraud, but we are told that didn’t happen. I’m not suggesting that people should have breached the capital building, not even if the security was allowing it in some cases. I’m just saying the bigger crime, perhaps the crime of the century, was the blatant theft of an election and the media’s complicity in the denial of the obvious. Of course they are complicit in other massive disinformation, but apparently that’s their job.
At any rate, I don’t know anyone looking to Trump as savior. He’s just doing his best to right the wrongs that he sees and stand up for the people of this country. He wants to use the presidency to make America strong again. Our current leader is bringing it down to the pit. Trump gains nothing from being president and it costs him dearly, unlike any of his predecessors.
I agree to a point. You are right we have turned Christianity into a political arena with all these “Reawakening tours.” But I think Michael’s point is we cannot be silent about what is happening. We need to speak up and speak out and make the changes God is calling us individually to make. We are to be His Hands here on earth. Our silence has allowed how many millions of murdered babies. Our silence has allowed human trafficking to become the biggest wealth accumulation … even in the Church. Our silence has allowed our Nation to decline because the Church is pew sitters getting entertained weekly and off they go for the week. I left the Institution years ago and don’t think I’ll ever return.
I’m also going to disagree with you that Trump is being held accountable. You must not be reading or watching what has been happening … and I’m not saying listen to MSM. Dig a little to get to the truth. This man has been accused of Russia, Ukraine call, Impeach, etc and every time he’s found innocent. He will be here as well. Meanwhile, Biden is making deals with China and being paid off.
But I’m not here to argue with you. I just pray you will find the truth and if you don’t time will give it to you. God bless.
Well said Regina, and I appreciate you not wanting to argue here. We don’t need to bicker, but we can learn from each other as we share facts and perspectives. Appreciate you taking the time to do so! Blessings, Michael
We were given a dry run back in 2020 when the mask mandate happened and people complied. I believe we set the stage to accept being silent. I refused. Was it hard? Absolutely. I was harassed not only by stores I entered but shoppers. Actually the Karens were the worse. Once I told the store I wasn’t masking, they let it go. Not happy but they let it go. It was the shoppers who were terrified of me and literally harassed me.
Our society has instilled such a level of fear in people that as I’ve said in some of my prior Blogs when I wrote about my past trauma, “fear became my friend.” But I remember back in 2020 when I was reading my Governor’s Facebook page and all the people worshipping him I was baffled. “Thank you Governor Lamont for protecting us. Thank you Governor Lamont for caring about us.” I didn’t understand. I went to the Lord and asked what was that about. He said “fatherlessness.” Wounded, hurt people who have bought into the fear and now they believe our tyrannical Governor was really caring about them. What they needed was a father? What they needed was the Heavenly Father. Sadly, they don’t know that.
Hence, that’s the work I feel called to. God bless and thanks for being so honest and open about this issue we are facing as a Nation in decline.
We didn’t comply either. Fear was the driving narrative. Few people have learned to “fear not” and they justify their fear with “common sense”, which although it may be common, so is a cold, but that doesn’t make it right. Thanks for commenting!
You are so right. But how and where do we “the Lambs” speak out.? Where do we go? where is the platform? I support IFA and sign petitions I am informed about. I do what I can do.
Thanks for commenting Peggy… Good question too. I’ll try to include my answer in the next blog I do, but you can start with your circle of influence. Not so much to initially tell your viewpoint, but first, discover theirs. Think of it as going on a quest to learn what other people think on a topic of interest and concern to you. If you begin by asking, you will find that most times, they will want to ask you the same question. That can begin a very productive dialog! 😊
Blessings, Michael
You would love Lance Wallnau’s teaching on Ninja Sheep and Killer Sheep. Ninja Sheep is based on being wise as serpents and harmless as doves infiltrating society to stand for what is right to gain influence in our “mountain(s)”. Killer Sheep is based on David, the shepherd and musician slaying Goliath.
Sounds like something I would enjoy Helene! Thanks for mentioning it!
Wow, I just looked up what the meaning of the name Telemachus is. Are you ready for this? It means Decisive Battle; far from battle; fighting from afar. You know, I’m pretty sure that the death of Telemachus brought forth everlasting fruit. It wasn’t like that of Abel, crying out for vengeance according to Hebrew 12:24, but it had an immediate positive effect. Our righteous blood speaks volumes! Acts 6:2-15 relates the story of a waitress so to speak, he was taking care of the food distribution among other things I’m sure. He was murdered by stones and Saul who later became Paul was a witness to that. God caught him and he became an apostle. They forgot to take his pen away in prison, and now we have his books for our benefit! Think about it, he was a terrorist who had an encounter with his Creator and everything changed. We have to believe that God can use us no matter our background and that the name of Jesus is so powerful that demons tremble when they hear His name! Let alone mentioning the cross, the blood, and so many other weapons that we have access to. Are we convinced that this world is our temporary home, or are we so invested in it and the comfort we have? God is for us, we can be the history maker, usually it’s the next generations that calls you that after you passed away, but Jesus called us sons and Paul said that we are co-heir with Christ. So, we are not surviving down here, we are power-filled!
A few days ago I was spending time with God and He shared some verses with me that may tie in with what you are saying in this blog and the one before. The verses are Ps 33:1-10 and Col 3. Verse 10 shows that the devices of man are not more powerful than God. God can stop that nuclear bomb, that explosion, that fire, that sword or knife and even that persecution thus Hebrew 11. He can change the minds of the wicked bringing the counsel of the wicked to nought. Vs 4: When we speak God’s words, it is truth and it is right. All the works of His hands are done in truth to show the world the truth through His mighty works that He is the only true God and only He can bring salvation. When He speaks truth things happen by His mighty word such as the parting of the sea and storehouses being plenty (Ps 6&7) Vs 9: When He speaks truth (when we speak His truth) it is done. His spoken truth has to be obeyed. For instance, when God commands (which is His truth) that the sword drops from a man’s hand, it will be done for He commanded it and it stood fast. This is why we must speak God’s truth so that the world will see that God is the I AM. Vs 5: He loveth righteousness and judgment. As God loves righteousness and judgement so must we as His church for without righteousness there will be judgment and with judgment comes righteousness. It’s only with righteousness and judgment that truth can be revealed (the love of). And it’s only with truth that words can be commanded and be done (stood fast) Vs. 11 When we seek God’s truth, He will counsel us, and it will last for generations. America has lost the counsel of God even though it was founded on that. America’s politics was founded on God’s counsel and when it stopped being founded on His counsel that is when it stopped being blessed. Thus vs 12…Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. A nation blessed by God is one which stands on His statutes and principles. Without His statutes, there will be and is depravity. This is why we need godly politicians from the White House to the school house. This is why the puritans only allowed Christians to run for office and why only Christians were allowed to vote. When the people walk away from God and His counsel the lies of depravity rise such as abortion, homosexuality, and other sexual deviances and perversions, and lustrous murders. We don’t tolerate evil. We speak against it. This is why Dietrich Bonhoeffer said “Silence in the face of evil is evil itself.” When you seek God’s truth, you can’t be silent! You can’t be silent because you love righteousness and judgment. And, when you speak truth, it will be commanded and be done. It is finished. This is why Jesus died and was resurrected. Not just so we will go to heaven but that we would speak truth in power and authority to the GLORY OF GOD! When godly politicians speak truth what they say will be done with power and authority to the glory of God. This is why God set up a political system from the beginning of time and is admonished and administered in Deuteronomy 17:15. In short, we are to pick a brethren not a stranger. Do we really think that God wants a king who approves of abortion and homosexuality and men going in women’s locker rooms and bathrooms and a man who doesn’t believe in Him? He specifically says not to set a king over thee who is a stranger and not a brother and repercussions of doing so in I Samuel 8. The Republic (self governing) was founded on God’s principles. The other 4 types of government that is Oligarchy, Timocracy, Democracy, and Tyranny or Dictatorship do not. These forms of government are shown in 1 Samuel 8.
Colossians 3 is the modern version of Psalms 33. When Christ was resurrected so were we resurrected. Seeking only things above that is truth, righteousness, and judgment. This is why the word love makes sense in the Greek Concordance that is to love in a moral and social sense. Love is not tolerating evil and depravity. It is showing the truth in that anything less will only bring enslavement and judgment. The point of judgment is to bring people back to the truth and righteousness.
This was incredibly good and so needed. Thank you! Sharing it!
So glad you were blessed by it Tina!