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SHIRLEY ROPErS HEATH And Puts Him on God’s LEdGER Of Hell The Bible is very clear that certain activities are sinful in the sight of God, and it is wrong to promote them, or defend them as an “alternative lifestyle”. Some who profess Christ say that He doesn’t worry about what sort of relationships people have, because all He stresses is the need to love one another. But Christians who accept the Bible as the final authority for their faith and practice should take it as it is instead of trying to twist the Word of God to validate lifestyles it clearly condemns. We are to love things that are good and hate evil (Psalms 97:10; Rom.12:9). Like John the Baptist, we should raise our voices in protest at the corruption going on in society, and the way prominent people set a bad example for others (Mark 6:17-18). But at the same time we’re to remember that we ourselves are saved ONLY by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Even in our zeal to tear down the strongholds of satan, there are still plenty of areas where compassion needs to be shown. Anyone who has read my material knows how I hate the way televangelists BANK on the ignorance and desperation of poor, broken-hearted people. A lot of Christians just don’t have the time to properly study their own Bibles to verify the truth or fallacy of popular prosperity doctrines. Televangelists live like kings at the expense of elderly and poverty-stricken viewers who fall for their sales pitch. Crooked televangelists waste poor people’s money on second and third homes, fancy cars and jewelry, etc., while their desperate donors count the days till their “harvest” comes in for sending in their last five dollar bill. Religious thieves laugh all the way to the bank. Such robbery is all the more vile because they dare to rob the poor in the Name of the poor Carpenter from Nazareth Who had no place to lay His head (Matt.8:20). Religious parasites lose no sleep over the fact they are dishonoring that worthy Name by which we are sanctified (James 2:7; 2 Pet.2:2). Another abominable thing is this Iraq war, and the fact that some politicians want to invade Iran as well, even though it hasn’t attacked America. Lies about hidden WMD were sold to the American people to sell the war in Iraq and drum up misguided patriotism. As a result, America and its allies are hated all over the world. This makes me mighty sad, because the majority of Americans are decent, generous, and kind-hearted people who believe in honesty and fair play. The deceit of politicians in high places has resulted in hundreds of thousands of innocent people dying and indescribable heartache. As much as I detest crooked televangelism and the Iraq war, it would NEVER occur to me to go and picket the funeral of any deceased televangelist or soldier. Televangelists might think they’re already enjoying their heaven right here on this earth. Maybe they’ve even got delusions of grandeur and think no cloud will ever rain on their picnic. But even the greediest religious charlatans have something in common with the rest of humanity. They have close friends and family who will be deeply traumatized when they die. Most people, rich or poor, will be survived by at least a few other people who dearly love them and mourn their passing. There are a few bad apples in every bunch, but most American soldiers wholeheartedly love their country. They dedicate their lives to defending it from enemies at home and abroad. They’re trained to follow orders and do what they’re told. On the battlefield, company commanders must make split-second decisions, which may or may not save the day. Soldiers must quickly obey. Deliberate, systematic abuse of civilians is one example of an order which must not be obeyed. So long as military commanders abide by Christian ethics and keep their mental balance, the following scenario is unlikely to happen: A frustrated lieutenant loses control of his emotions and wants to get revenge on as many of “the enemy” as possible, with minimum casualties to his unit. He knows all the men in the area have gone away on a pilgrimage. So he orders a Christian soldier to set fire to a whole village of unarmed women and children who are peacefully sleeping in bed. That soldier would be faced with the choice of disobeying his commander or disobeying Christ, Who would condemn obeying such orders as murder. If the soldier disobeys the lieutenant, he risks immediate court-martial. If he obeys the lieutenant, he denies Christ through his actions and risks a future confrontation with the Judge of all the earth. It isn’t easy being a soldier. In the deafening din and terror of a fierce firefight, there is plenty of room for error. Sometimes innocent bystanders get hurt despite every effort to hit only those who are attacking the soldiers. But what kind of military would it be if each soldier deliberated over his commander’s order for an hour, while the whole unit was being hit from all sides? It’s easy to pass judgment on soldiers from the comfort of an arm chair! Soldiers aren’t into political wrangling. Soldiers don’t run the CIA or other intelligence organizations. Soldiers put their lives into the hands of Top Brass who plot the strategy and make the decisions. But political leaders who deliberately deploy other people’s sons and daughters overseas to put them in danger based on a lie will be held accountable by God. Most soldiers are barely out of their teens. They are full of patriotism and have a bright vision of a better America and a safer world. They haven’t yet been disillusioned by the fact things aren’t always as they appear to be. The very idea that an opponent of the war would picket the funeral of one of these brave soldiers makes my skin crawl. Heath Leger died recently, allegedly from a drug overdose. That’s where the real tragedy begins. There was something missing in this young man’s life, or Heath wouldn’t have been trying to fill the void with chemical comforters. Only God knows for absolute certain whether or not Heath had ever made peace with Him. But if this never happened, the real tragedy is that no Christian ever showed Heath the light and led him to a life of peace and joy in Christ. After I heard about Heath, something told me a certain individual would zero in on the sad story. And she did. Shirley Phelps-Roper, a member of a radical religious sect, has gone out of her way to make sure Heath’s relatives know exactly where he went. She and her entourage said they planned to picket memorial services held in his honor. Why? Because Heath played a gay character in Brokeback Mountain. Over here in N. Ireland, I listened to some radio programs where Shirley yelled about how horrible others were and how the radio host was going to roast in hell for arguing with her. A certain Pharisee praised the Lord in Luke 18:9-14. He thanked God that he wasn’t a sinner like everybody else. He thought he’d “made the grade” and God was lucky to have him on His team as His representative. But who went home justified by God? Not the boastful do-gooder, but the sinner who hadn’t done anything to earn God’s approval, the one who cast himself on the mercy of his Creator. Shirley needs to remember this story before she throws stones at others. Shirley pickets the funerals of deceased soldiers. She rejoices over the death of these men and mocks the grief of their relatives. While broken-hearted mourners weep, Shirley shouts that the soldier was God’s enemy and wasn’t allowed into heaven. Think of the air fare that woman spends to fly to far-flung corners of the nation, not to comfort somebody, but to increase their agony. Shirley could invest that money to do works which glorify Christ, instead of putting Him to open shame around the world. Soldiers are defending a nation which Shirley says God has already condemned to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. By Shirley’s twisted reasoning, the soldier’s service of a of a nation hated by God makes soldiers hated enemies of God, who are doomed to hell. In Scripture, Jesus never commanded any soldier to quit the army, including the Roman centurion who asked healing for his servant (Luke 7:2-10). Jesus even commended this Gentile soldier for his great faith. Jesus didn’t denounce him as an enemy of God bound for hell, even though he’d fought for Rome. This was a man who served in an army of occupation. Jesus’ own nation had been conquered by Rome. The epistles are silent about whether Christians should or shouldn’t serve in the military, though Christian tradition indicates that new converts would refuse to enlist in the Roman army because the Romans fought to conquer other lands. The Romans did not fight strictly for national defense. The only justifiable war is a war of defense, which should be fought ONLY when all peaceful options have failed. This particular Roman soldier was liked by the locals because he had financed the building of a Jewish synagogue. Nevertheless he was still part of an army which fought to take over other people’s countries. Yet Jesus did not threaten the Roman soldier with the fires of hell. Instead, he brought healing to the soldier’s household. Is Shirley bringing healing or hurt? Shirley knows her picket signs can’t bother the deceased, but they do torment the living. Shirley is actually punishing innocent people for what others have done! MY Bible teaches that each person is held accountable to God only for their OWN actions, not those of others. Jere.31:29: In those days shall they say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children’s teeth are set on edge. Verse 30: But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge. Homosexuality violates Scriptural teaching, but where is Shirley’s consistency? Where is her outrage against actors who portray murderers, thieves, terrorists, adulterers, etc.? Those sins are also a one-way ticket to hell! Rev.22:15: For without (outside the New Jerusalem) are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. Is Shirley so sinless that she should cast stones at those who mourn Heath’s death? I can detect at least one pitfall Shirley might fall into: Matt.7:12: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets. Just about everybody on earth has a rotten apple on their family tree, no matter how perfect people imagine themselves to be. What if Shirley had a Christian relative or a dear friend who had character flaws which didn’t bother Shirley enough to cause her to picket the highway? Those barely noticeable sins could include covetousness, evil thoughts, pride, envy, etc. God notices such “little sins”, unless they’re repented of and put under the Blood of Christ. If Shirley has such an imperfect loved one, what if he/she were to die and meet his/her Maker before having time to grow spiritually and conquer the “little sins” in his/her life? What if a big contingent of religious fanatics marched up the road carrying signs which said: “God hates proud people” or “God hates gossipers”? What if some loud woman hollered through a megaphone: “That hypocrite cussed at her cat, so now he/she’s roasting in HELL!” Or: “God hates bigots, pencil-stealers-at-work and busybody-enablers!” Or, MY God is laughing at you guys, because your loved one got struck down by His judgment for telling a dirty joke!” Why doesn’t Shirley march up and down the highway picketing other practices which are an abomination unto the LORD (Deut.18:10-12)? Why not give equal time to denouncing hypocrisy and materialism in the church? What about the admonition in Proverbs 31:26 about opening your mouth with wisdom, having the LAW OF KINDNESS in your tongue? Maybe those issues wouldn’t make the headlines! * * * * * http://banpreachergreed.tripod.com http://boogerbucks.tripod.com http://kingdomage.tripod.com
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