Free Republic

Now it's Christmas. We have numerous nativity sets we've collected over the years - one special one we bartered for outside Bethlehem in the mid-60s. There's another one given us by Tanzanian missionaries - soapstone figurines. And so forth and so forth.

Two Republican lawmakers and brothers jointly rescinded their backing of Florida Gov. Charlie Crist for the U.S. Senate, using vague language to explain that they're out of the endorsement game. "We take our endorsements seriously, but the governor knows why we withdrew and he left us with no alternative," said Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, speaking on behalf of his brother, Mario. Balart Chief of Staff Ana Carbonell told Fox News said the brothers aren't going to turn around and back Crist opponent, former House Speaker Mario Rubio, who has moved up in primary polls ahead of next year's vote

My new son, Jeff, is out of jail, as of last February. Now this Christmas he put up the tree with his two children—Haley and Jeff Jr. I saw them last evening. When I walked into the house, there the three of them were sprawled across the living room floor playing a board game. Haley is 8. Jr. is 11. Jeff Sr. is 35.

Christmas is heaven's marvel. It is beyond us and yet with us. The birth of God! It took place in Bethlehem. The theologians refer to this marvel as the "incarnation." This is truly the marvelous paradox in our midst: God had no beginning, yet Bethlehem is his start. God is the author of life, yet he comes to life in a castoff barn. God, the creator of all, is created in Mary's womb. The Eternal One becomes earth-bound. The Invisible becomes visible. The Immortal becomes mortal. The Immeasurable becomes measurable. The Timeless and Spatially Limitless One becomes logged into this...

No wonder Jesus said of himself, "I am the light of the world" (John 8:12). Without Him, all else is darkness.

The utterances of Christ Jesus at a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, were 7 in number... [Seven. Denotes spiritual perfection. It is the number or hall-mark of the Holy Spirit's work. He is the Author of God's Word, and seven is stamped on it as the water-mark is seen in the manufacture of paper. He is the Author and Giver of life; and seven is the number which regulates every period of Incubation and Gestation, in insects, birds, animals, and man. ] Seven in Scripture suggest the idea of completeness so we...

It’s simple really: feed the hungry, the homeless, and the forgotten. Matthew 25:35 says, “For I was hungry, and you fed me.” It has always broken my heart to see the people on the street corner holding their “Will work for food” cardboard signs. More times than not, I have given them money. Then I began to think, I could do something more for them. I could do something more practical. I could help feed them. I could be part of the “Give us this day our daily bread” thing. I know many people who say these people may be...

'Heaven came down and glory filled my soul.' Many of us recall singing that line from the hymn by the same title. But what do we mean by that? Do we mean that we experienced God directly, by the descent of Heaven itself into our heart? Do we really mean that glory filled our soul? The only way this sentiment can have a biblical foundation is if 'Heaven' is Jesus Christ and the 'glory' that floods our soul is the goodness and sovereign mercy of God offered in the person and work of God incarnate. In this look at the...

TAUNTON, Mass. (AP) - An 8-year-old boy was sent home from school and ordered to undergo a psychological evaluation after he was asked to make a Christmas drawing and came up with what appeared to be a stick figure of Jesus on a cross, the child's father said Tuesday. Chester Johnson told WBZ-TV that his son made the drawing on Dec. 2 after his second-grade teacher asked children to sketch something that reminded them of the holiday. Johnson said the teacher became upset when his son said he drew himself on the cross. Johnson, who is black, told WBZ he...

For the past 150 years archaeologists have been verifying the exact truthfulness of the Bible's detailed records of various events, customs, persons, cities, nations, and geographical locations. Dr. Nelson Glueck probably the greatest modern authority on Israeli archeology, has said, “No archeological discovery has ever controverted [overturned] a Biblical reference. Scores of archeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or in exact detail historical statements in the Bible. And, by the same token, proper evaluation of Biblical descriptions has often led to amazing discoveries.” In every instance where the Bible can be, or has been checked out...

"They will hate you for My sake". This is what Jesus said would happen to those who follow Him. "Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name's sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved."Matthew 24:9-13 Up until recent times, most Christians in America...

Glenn was faced with 20 years in prison. I met him while on staff at the jail.

There are hundreds who see through this ritual.

The Truth is that our nation is on the brink of disaster by the hand of a government monarchy, which includes both parties. The Truth is that empowering one party over the other, one election cycle after another, will never usher in real change, and change is needed. The Truth is that, unlike the days when Christ walked the earth, We The People vote our Caesar’s into office. The Truth is that We The Voters shall be held to account for the evil committed by those whom we empower through our votes.

This Christmas Season, remember the reality of Christmas! A Savior was born! (Luke 2:1-20, Matt 1:18-25, 2:1-15, John 1:14) Do you Believe? Do you really believe? or do you just celebrate a "Traditional Christmas". What better way of celebrating this Christmas Season then to know the reality of Christmas. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved" (John 3:16,17) This Christmas,...

However, in my prayers I would lift to God the blue blanket. Then I would offer the Lord a simple petition: “Please, Jesus, bring back to us our son. Bring him back to us for we love him.”

In yesterday’s New York Times, there was an article about White House social secretary Desirée Rogers. In it, reporter Sheryl Gay Stolberg wrote: “When former social secretaries gave a luncheon to welcome Ms. Rogers earlier this year, one participant said, she surprised them by suggesting the Obamas were planning a ‘non-religious Christmas….’” This same participant said that “the Obamas did not intend to put the manger scene on display” (this was confirmed by the White House). Indeed, as Stolberg wrote, “there had been internal discussions about making Christmas more inclusive and whether to display the crèche.”Catholic League president Bill Donohue...

From the womb of divine grace was born the original human being, the height of creation's journey.

We lost our comfortable home for what I came to call “God’s tin can.” It was a makeshift trailer set alongside a woodsy road. The interior was dark fake wood walls and an orange carpet and drapes from the 50s. The front screen door had a screen that was busted halfway out. We were fortunate: we did have an indoor bathroom with tub and shower and running water —hot and cold. We had a refrigerator and stove. Other than that, when the Maine snowstorms came to fill up much of the space around the trailer, we were banked in for...

When people see us, they need to see the Christ Spirit in us. This cannot be if we separate ourselves from God as miserable sinners. That is self righteous hypocrisy. People saying they do what they want because they are miserable sinners. That is saying sin is God's fault. Jesus called us to be one in Christ. John 17:20-23. “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word. That they all may be one; as thou, Father, are in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in...

. Obama wanted “non-religious Christmas”? 7 December 2009 28784 President Obama and the First Family were planning a “non-religious Christmas,” according to Social Secretary Desiree Rogers. Ms. Rogers reportedly told a gathering of former social secretaries that the Obamas did not intend on putting the Nativity scene on display – a longtime East Room tradition. The account was reported in the Fashion and Style section of The New York Times. The White House confirmed to the Times that there had been internal discussions about making Christmas more inclusive – but in the end – tradition won out – and the...

Parents, often without even realizing it, have been teaching their children the following things about Santa Claus: SANTA IS OMNISCIENT He knows how children behave throughout the year. The familiar song says, "He knows if we've been good or bad." Also he knows exactly what children want for Christmas even if the child does not have an opportunity to tell him personally. SANTA IS OMNIPOTENT No storm is too great to hinder Santa from performing his annual miracle of delivering gifts throughout the world. He also defies the laws of nature by flying and by coming down the narrowest (and...

Luke 1:26-32 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not,...

Home. What a powerful yet comforting word, that is, if it represents concern, understanding, and the Lord’s kindness. Sadly, some homes are but houses, and some are hardly that. Those shells speak of abuse and sadness, loneliness, and shame. The same with the Big House — planet Earth.

Some time after the conflict, Fuchida came upon the testimony of a young Christian woman. Her mother and father had been killed by the Japanese. That war had swept away her parents’ lives.

On April 18, 1775, a British soldier ordered John Hancock and others to "disperse in the name of George the Sovereign King of England." John Adams responded to him: "We recognize no sovereign but God, and no king but Jesus!" ". . .no king but Jesus!"

While huge segments of Christendom go apostate by baptizing practicing homosexuality as divinely blessed, Christianity based upon the Bible as divine revelation not to be tampered with is flourishing in Africa.

by Chuck NessAs we approach Christmas, you will no doubt be confronted by those who would like to remove the name Christ and any reference to Him from the Holiday season. That is because the world we live in has been judged by Him and it's end is near. Thus, those who hold onto this world will do all they can to keep the lost from finding the Messiah, Christ Jesus. Many do not even want to use the word "Christmas" to describe this holiday season. There are disputes across this country in community after community where public officials are...

Americans are also so tolerant of religion — any religion except Christianity these days — that their mindset says, “Yes, Muslims coexist nicely alongside Buddhists and Hindus and Shintoists and Jews and Christians and animists and atheists and agnostics. Yes they do. Isn’t that nice?”

I’d like to specifically request that retailers all over the U.S. stop saying “Merry Christmas” altogether. In fact, I want retailers to remove the word “Christmas” from all of their print ads, radio spots, TV spots, billboards, and in-store displays and decorations. I think it’s the least we can do for our Savior.

With that I remembered reading of other worship experiences like this peppered around America. They are there. They are active. They are alive.

Ephesians 5:17-20 (New International Version) 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. 18Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. 19Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (King James Version) 17Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. Being...

It is mind-boggling to think that our generation alone is uniquely standing on the precipice of time and where no generation has ever stood. We are living in the days spoken of by the ancient prophets. These prophets spoke of the Israelites being gathered back into their own land, in passages such as Ezekiel 37:21: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. This began in 1948. The “dry bones” of Ezekiel 37...

Every Thanksgiving season, I am reminded of the ten lepers in John’s Gospel. You know these ten, Jesus is on his way to Galilee when they spot him and begin to cry out for a healing. Our compassion filled Jesus grants this request and the ten rush off to present themselves to the priest. They will be announced clean and allowed to return to their families, their faith, and their lives. One stops in the midst of the joy, realizing both the source of the joy and the importance of gratitude, and returns to express both realizations to his newfound...

The Jesus Story always ends in overcoming the enemy. Always. Then appropriate that overcoming-yet-to-be in the present tense by exclaiming "Thank you, Jesus."

In the past five years - before our very eyes - we have seen the nearly complete erosion and virtual extinction of conservative policies and programs in US politics. It seems that The United States is increasingly becoming more like a secular socialist State than the Representative Republic of "In God We Trust" that it was founded upon. Our Judean-Christian heritage, morality and values do not dominate our culture and society as they once did. Another reality is that many have never known any other kind of society than what presently exists. Accountability, responsibility and virtue are “hisses and by-words”...

Today's divine mercies are keeping the globe spinning upon its axis. God loves this globe. "For God so loved the world. . ."

It is God, the unseen partner of prayer warriors. Those who intercede on behalf of the Republic are not in need of a mortal leader at the moment. We are bereft of a mighty party spokesperson.

The Divine Christ and the Bible SACRED SCRIPTURE is made up of a number of books, different in many ways, but all brought together in Jesus Christ. From Genesis to the Apocalypse or the book of Revelation, Jesus Christ is the center. The story of the Bible is the story of Jesus Christ. In the old Testament we are prepared for the coming of Jesus Christ. In the New Testament Jesus Christ is with us, in His life on earth in the Gospels, in His life in the Church in the rest of the books. To grasp then what Jesus...

Testimony of the Evangelists by Simon Greenleaf (1783-1853)   Simon Greenleaf , one of the principle founders of the Harvard Law School, originally set out to disprove the biblical testimony concerning the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He was certain that a careful examination of the internal witness of the Gospels would dispel all the myths at the heart of Christianity. But this legal scholar came to the conclusion that the witnesses were reliable, and that the resurrection did in fact happen.   I n examining the evidence of the Christian religion, it is essential to the discovery of truth that...

EVIDENCE FOR THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST A Challenge for Skeptics [ NOTE: For a response to the book The Empty Tomb: Jesus Beyond the Grave (Prometheus, 2005) by Lowder / Price see the free 500+ page E-book This Joyful Eastertide: A Critical Review of The Empty Tomb  (PDF) by Steve Hays, et al (c) 2006 ] A reasonable challenge to the skeptic is this: If it can be proved that Jesus really rose from the dead, will you believe in him? For if he really rose, that validates his claim to be divine and not merely human, for resurrection from...

"EMPTY REPETITION. You see, I majored in religion. Had eyes, but no vision. And men? Men let me graduate. And I listened to you, as if you held the key to my fate. I listened to you as if you died on the cross for me. And I listened to you as if you truly care, where I spend eternity." "PLAGIARIZED SPIRITUALITY. A mask of glitter. Holding scriptures and plaster. You see, it was men I had my faith in. I was deceived by the thief near the Tree of Education. Flattery trapped me, rocked me to sleep. And I...

Why does God allow there to be evil in the world? Are we not all created in the image of God? Many ask, and few seem to have good answers, for the question of, "Why God didn’t just create us so that we would never have to experience pain, suffering, and sadness?" After all, He has the power to make the world free of evil, yet He chose instead to make us creatures with free will. Thus, free will was the door left open for the possibility of evil to exist. If we have the right to chose between...

Christ, Lunatic or God? If reason alone were all we had to establish the existence and essence of God, we might feel curiously dissatisfied. If God is a Supreme Spirit, omnipotent and of total benevolence, the origin and end of us all, why does He not speak and re-assure us? The Christian claim is that, in fact, God has spoken to mankind first in the prophets of the Old Testament and last of all through His Son made man. The historical existence of Christ is what we are now concerned with and also with His claim to be the Son...

An Ignorant Jesus?  Rev. William Most, Ph.d              Was Jesus confused? Did He know He was Messiah? or divine? Did He know much  about the afterlife? Did He have at least one superstition? Did He have only the mentality of a Jew of the first third of the first century? -- Wild as it may seem, some prominent scholars charge Him on all the above counts, and more too.              But: What does the Church teach on these things? Pope Pius XII, in his great Encyclical on the Mystical Body, on June 29, 1943, rejected all such charges. He taught:...

Christ and the Christian It would be impertinent to speak of a Christian without first trying to find out about Christ. Calling someone Christian only indicates that in some fashion he resembles Christ. But Who is Christ? Why are there millions of people who call themselves Christians? Philosophers have given their name to disciples who follow their system of thought Platonists, Thomists, Kantists, Marxists. None of these, however, have attained the prodigious continued devotion that Christ inspires in His followers. Even Buddhism, which demands a total surrender to its rules, has very little to say about Buddha himself, whose image...

The Brothers and Sisters of Jesus   There is absolutely ho historical evidence that Mary, the mother of Jesus, had other children. The Catholic Church teaches that Mary was a Virgin before, during, and after the birth of Jesus.The belief in Mary’s perpetual virginity (which necessarily includes her virginity after the birth of Christ) has been so deeply rooted in Catholic Tradition from the very beginning, that the Fathers of the Church instinctively and vigorously rose to its defense every time early heretics questioned it. Among the many witnesses that could be mentioned in this connection are: Origen, St....

Christ Is Necessary for You MILLIONS OF MEN have lived in this world yet only one Man could say in His own right and back up His words with proof: "Which of you can convict me of sin" (John 8:46)? Hundred of men over the ages have been teachers of their fellowmen, hundreds have pointed out the way life should be lived, hundreds have led others of their fellow beings, but not one of them dared say of himself as did this Man: "I AM the way, and the truth and the life" (John 14:6). Many claimed to be sent...

Have you ever given it much though about the phrase, “Lift Christ up with Praise�? Quite often you will here a pastor use this phrase as he instructs you to give glory to God though His Son. But have you ever really consider what the phrase means to you and and the significance of it? Give me a moment of your time and allow me to introduce you to something very few Christians have actually ever considered when hearing this phrase, “Lift Christ up with Praise�. Most people know the verse John 3:16 , many have even memorized it....

The Hidden Truth About Halloween: Behind the Mask Does the Bible have anything to say about the strange customs surrounding Halloween? In fact, it does—and none of it is good.While God's Holy Days in the Bible celebrate the role of Jesus Christ in bringing mankind to salvation in the eternal family of God (as explained in the following article and our free booklet God's Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind), Halloween is a celebration of the opposite—of demonism, witchcraft, death and evil spirits.God's Word makes it clear that no one should dare entertain witchcraft or act...