The Death of a Rose: Gay Marriage Through the Streets of Pasadena

On what is forecasted to be a gorgeous New Year's Day morning in warm and sunny Southern California, millions of people will gather on the streets of Pasadena and around their televisions for the 125th annual Tournament of Roses Parade. Elaborate floats, marching bands, and equestrian teams will slowly make their way down the parade route. Having seen the parade in person, and having watched it many times on television, the Rose Parade is a beautiful display of the God-given creativity of mankind, using God's beautifully created flora to make massive, mobile works of art.

Sadly, this year it will all change. The last petal of the rose will fall on New Year's Day, 2014. The beauty of every float, the talent of every marching band, the grandeur of every equestrian team will be marred by the shameless flaunting of man's most prolific talent: the outward expression of the inherent love of sin and hatred of God.

I was disappointed but not surprised when I read the following in a Los Angeles Times online article:

Danny Leclair snapped a photo of two toy grooms holding hands. He then sent the photo via email to his longtime partner, Aubrey Loots, with a question:

"Do you want to get married on a Rose Parade float?"

Loots agreed, and on New Year’s Day the Los Angeles couple will become real-life wedding cake toppers when they say “I do” on a cake-shaped float in the 125th Tournament of Roses Parade.

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s float, “Living the Dream: Love Is the Best Protection,” was created to celebrate victories in 2013 for gay marriage advocates, including Supreme Court decisions upholding the repeal of California’s Proposition 8 and striking down a key part of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Foundation spokesman Ged Kenslea said the organization supports legally sanctioning same-sex marriage because it encourages more stable relationships among gay men as well as behavior that will prevent the spread of HIV.

“We believe that marriage saves lives,” he said.

People have contact the Tournament of Roses to voice their displeasure about the upcoming public defilement of marriage as two men are joined in unholy matrimony atop of a wedding cake made of roses and other flowers. A Facebook page has been dedicated to boycotting the Rose Parade. While recent history has shown us that some boycotts work, in the end, they are not the answer to righting social wrongs.

This is not to say that Christians shouldn't involve themselves in boycotts. I have initiated and participated in a few. However, boycotts are merely band-aids on mortal wounds. Boycotts tackle the symptoms of a disease, but all-too-often ignore the disease's pathology.

What leads two men to stand atop a rose-covered cake and profane the institution of marriage in front of millions of people is not love for each other; for they know not true love. Rather it is lust and the willful succumbing to their debased minds. What leads the Tournament of Roses Parade to allow such a depraved and blasphemous display is not anything noble. The Tournament of Roses Parade's sanctioning of such an abase, public display is indeed tolerance, but it is not tolerance in a positive sense. It is tolerance in the sense of accepting that which is evil and calling it good (Isaiah 5:20).

No, I'm not a hater. True love warns. Those who love others warn them when they are in danger. Those who love other people don't want others to face God's wrath, judgment, and punishment for sin.

Please Keep Reading

Jesus Christ as Lord. He is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. He was with the Father in and at Creation. All things--all things—were created by Him, and through Him, and for Him. Nothing has ever been made that was not made by Jesus Christ. He is the sinless Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. He is also the Lion of the Tribe of Judah who will judge both the living and the dead. He is King of kings and Lord of Lords. He is sovereign over all things. He owns every person, just as He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and it matters not if, at present, the person is in wanton rebellion against Jesus Christ or one of His born-again, beloved children. Jesus owns it all. Jesus owns us all. God is. God is one. God is Three in One—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—One God in Three Persons—the Triune One—the Trinity—God. And this God, for there is only one God, is the God before whom every person will one-day stand to give an account for their lives. Because God alone is truly and perfectly good, He will judge each person according to the perfect moral standard He has written on every human heart.

Everyone knows it is a sin to lie because they know God is Truth. Everyone knows it is wrong to harbor bitterness, resentment, and hatred in their heart toward another person because they know God is love.

Everyone knows it is wrong to fornicate (to engage sexually with a man or a woman outside the bonds of marriage between one man and one woman; they know it is wrong to look and think with lust; they know it is wrong to commit adultery; they know it is wrong to engage in homosexuality, lesbianism, or any other form of sexual depravity because they know God is Faithful.

Everyone knows it is wrong to take the name of the Lord their God in vain, to bring his name down low and use it as an adjectival term of excitement, anger, sorrow, or fear, because they know God is Holy.

For the above reasons, and others, everyone who stands before God to give an account will do so without excuse. No one will be able to claim innocence or ignorance of violating God’s law--whether in thought, word, or deed. Because God is good, because He is holy, righteous and just, He must punish sin. The punishment God has ascribed for sin, all sin, is eternity in Hell. It matters not whether you, the reader, believe this. What matters is that it is true. Truth is not determined by what one believes. God is truth, though every person is found to be a liar. Truth is that which comports to reality, and any attempt to live life apart from the reality of God is to live a life of chaos, absurdity, arrogant denial, and sin.

This same God--again, for there is only one God--who is angry with the wicked every day, whose wrath abides upon the ungodly, who will judge the world in righteousness, is the same God who is loving, merciful, gracious, and kind. And He showed His great love for mankind when He sent His Son to earth in the Person of Jesus Christ—fully God and fully Man, yet without sin.

Jesus of Nazareth, born of a virgin just as the prophet Isaiah declared more than 700 years before Jesus’s literal, physical birth, lived the perfect, sinless life you cannot live. For some 33 years, Jesus lived a life in perfect obedience to the law of God--in thought, word, and deed--a life you and I could not hope to live for a mere 33 seconds. And then He voluntarily went to the cross.

Yes, it was the Jewish people who hatefully and viciously demanded Jesus’s execution. Yes, it was the Roman government that carried out the despicable act. But they were all merely instruments in the hands of another. For it pleased God the Father to crush God the Son under the full weight and fury of His wrath against sin. God the Father made God the Son, who knew no sin, to become sin on behalf of those who repent and believe the gospel so that through the sacrifice of His Son many would be made righteous in the eyes of Almighty God. In other words, on that great and terrible day God the Father looked upon God the Son as if He had lived the depraved life of a sinner and in exchange--a great exchange--God the Father looks upon those whom He has caused to be born again, to repent and believe the gospel, as if they had lived His Son’s perfect, precious, and priceless life.

Jesus shed His innocent blood on the cross. He died a literal, physical death on the cross. And He was buried in a tomb not His own. Three days later, Jesus forever defeated sin and death when He physically, bodily rose from the grave. And unlike every false god created in the imaginations of men--whether the false gods of Islam, Catholicism, Mormonism, Hinduism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Oprah-ism, or Atheism (a religion like every other spiritual “ism”)--Jesus Christ is alive today and He will return at a time of the Father’s choosing.

What God commands of you, the reader, is the same thing He commands of me and all people everywhere, and that’s that you repent. Turn from your sin and turn toward God--and by faith alone receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. You must come to God on His terms. God does not negotiate with sinners. God will not be bribed by your religious practices or what you may perceive as "good works" acceptable to God. God will not weigh your “good” against your "bad," for God does not see you or anyone else as good--good in keeping with His standard of moral perfection. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

If you do not read the gospel of Jesus Christ and see it for what it is, good news, it is because you love your sin more than you love God. It is because you love yourself more than you love God. It is because the love of God and the Truth of His Word is not in you. But if God causes you to be born again and extends to you the gifts of repentance and faith, which only He can give, then He will take your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. You will begin to love the things God loves and hate the things God hates. You will stop presuming upon God’s forgiveness as if it is something you have earned or deserved. Instead, you will have the confident assurance He has forgiven you--not on the basis of any deeds you have done in righteousness, but based entirely upon God’s mercy, grace, and love.

And why would God allow His one and only Son to die a sinner’s death He did not deserve in order to take upon Himself the punishment sinners rightly deserve for their sins against God, so that sinners could be forgiven and saved? “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Please repent and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, while God has given you time.


Questions and comments regarding this and/or any other article on this blog can be sent to: info@crossencountersmin.com.

Google's Pro-Abortion Ad Policy

My friend, Ken Cook, recently took the above screen shot of Google's ad policy regarding abortion-related advertisements. The chart indicates what kind of abortion-related content is permissible, and what kind of content is prohibited. Google's ad policy makes one thing abundantly clear. Google, as an organization, is pro-abortion. By publicly articulating its abortion advertisement policy, Google reveals what everyone knows about abortion, but are too afraid or too callous and indifferent to admit. Abortion is a violent and gruesome act that results in the murder of an unborn child.

Look at the above chart. Approved abortion-related advertisement content includes:

• Abortion clinics
• Abortion medical assessment
• Abortion counseling
• The mention of a "woman's right to choose," "pro-life," "pro-choice," or other related phrasing in the context of political advertising

Conspicuously (but understandably) absent from the above list is the mention of:

• Crisis Pregnancy Centers
• Counseling regarding alternatives to abortion
• Adoption agencies
• The mention of medical data showing women who have had an abortion are at significantly higher risk for breast cancer and other major medical problems than women who have not had an abortion

The same chart includes what Google has deemed prohibited abortion-related content:

"Google doesn't allow abortion ads with violent language such as 'abortion is murder,' or gruesome imagery."

However, Google does allow violent language and gruesome imagery. Abortion is violent. Abortion is gruesome. Google's abortion-related advertisement policy propagates the gruesome violence that is abortion. Google aids and abets the murder of unborn children by allowing abortionists and abortion advocates advertise on their various websites.

Google says advertisers can't use phraseology such as "abortion is murder." Why? The reason should be obvious. Google doesn't want their ad clients calling abortion what it really is, what Google knows it is.....murder. Google doesn't want something like the truth getting in the way of profits and their pro-abortion agenda.

The mothers and fathers who abort their children are not victims. They are perpetrators. What they do to unborn children they do with premeditation and malice aforethought. And Google wants to help them snuff out the lives of their unborn children by advertising abortuaries and abortion counseling.

As violent and gruesome as abortion is, as selfish and convenience-driven as abortive parents are, as blood-drunk for filthy lucre as abortion providers are, there remains the possibility of forgiveness. It is available, however, only through Jesus Christ, and you must come to Him on His terms; for God does not negotiate with sinners.

Please Keep Reading

Jesus Christ as Lord. He is the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. He was with the Father in and at Creation. All things--all things—were created by Him, and through Him, and for Him. Nothing has ever been made that was not made by Jesus Christ. He is the sinless Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. He is also the Lion of the Tribe of Judah who will judge both the living and the dead. He is King of kings and Lord of Lords. He is sovereign over all things. He owns every person, just as He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and it matters not if, at present, the person is in wanton rebellion against Jesus Christ or one of His born-again, beloved children. Jesus owns it all. Jesus owns us all. God is. God is one. God is Three in One—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—One God in Three Persons—the Triune One—the Trinity—God. And this God, for there is only one God, is the God before whom every person will one-day stand to give an account for their lives. Because God alone is truly and perfectly good, He will judge each person according to the perfect moral standard He has written on every human heart.

Everyone knows it is a sin to lie because they know God is Truth. Everyone knows it is wrong to harbor bitterness, resentment, and hatred in their heart toward another person because they know God is love.

Everyone knows it is wrong to fornicate (to engage sexually with a man or a woman outside the bonds of marriage between one man and one woman; they know it is wrong to look and think with lust; they know it is wrong to commit adultery; they know it is wrong to engage in homosexuality, lesbianism, or any other form of sexual depravity because they know God is Faithful.

Everyone knows it is wrong to take the name of the Lord their God in vain, to bring his name down low and use it as an adjectival term of excitement, anger, sorrow, or fear, because they know God is Holy.

For the above reasons, and others, everyone who stands before God to give an account will do so without excuse. No one will be able to claim innocence or ignorance of violating God’s law--whether in thought, word, or deed. Because God is good, because He is holy, righteous and just, He must punish sin. The punishment God has ascribed for sin, all sin, is eternity in Hell. It matters not whether you, the reader, believe this. What matters is that it is true. Truth is not determined by what one believes. God is truth, though every person is found to be a liar. Truth is that which comports to reality, and any attempt to live life apart from the reality of God is to live a life of chaos, absurdity, arrogant denial, and sin.

This same God--again, for there is only one God--who is angry with the wicked every day, whose wrath abides upon the ungodly, who will judge the world in righteousness, is the same God who is loving, merciful, gracious, and kind. And He showed His great love for mankind when He sent His Son to earth in the Person of Jesus Christ—fully God and fully Man, yet without sin.

Jesus of Nazareth, born of a virgin just as the prophet Isaiah declared more than 700 years before Jesus’s literal, physical birth, lived the perfect, sinless life you cannot live. For some 33 years, Jesus lived a life in perfect obedience to the law of God--in thought, word, and deed--a life you and I could not hope to live for a mere 33 seconds. And then He voluntarily went to the cross.

Yes, it was the Jewish people who hatefully and viciously demanded Jesus’s execution. Yes, it was the Roman government that carried out the despicable act. But they were all merely instruments in the hands of another. For it pleased God the Father to crush God the Son under the full weight and fury of His wrath against sin. God the Father made God the Son, who knew no sin, to become sin on behalf of those who repent and believe the gospel so that through the sacrifice of His Son many would be made righteous in the eyes of Almighty God. In other words, on that great and terrible day God the Father looked upon God the Son as if He had lived the depraved life of a sinner and in exchange--a great exchange--God the Father looks upon those whom He has caused to be born again, to repent and believe the gospel, as if they had lived His Son’s perfect, precious, and priceless life.

Jesus shed His innocent blood on the cross. He died a literal, physical death on the cross. And He was buried in a tomb not His own. Three days later, Jesus forever defeated sin and death when He physically, bodily rose from the grave. And unlike every false god created in the imaginations of men--whether the false gods of Islam, Catholicism, Mormonism, Hinduism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Oprah-ism, or Atheism (a religion like every other spiritual “ism”)--Jesus Christ is alive today and He will return at a time of the Father’s choosing.

What God commands of you, the reader, is the same thing He commands of me and all people everywhere, and that’s that you repent. Turn from your sin and turn toward God--and by faith alone receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. You must come to God on His terms. God does not negotiate with sinners. God will not be bribed by your religious practices or what you may perceive as "good works" acceptable to God. God will not weigh your “good” against your "bad," for God does not see you or anyone else as good--good in keeping with His standard of moral perfection. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

If you do not read the gospel of Jesus Christ and see it for what it is, good news, it is because you love your sin more than you love God. It is because you love yourself more than you love God. It is because the love of God and the Truth of His Word is not in you. But if God causes you to be born again and extends to you the gifts of repentance and faith, which only He can give, then He will take your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. You will begin to love the things God loves and hate the things God hates. You will stop presuming upon God’s forgiveness as if it is something you have earned or deserved. Instead, you will have the confident assurance He has forgiven you--not on the basis of any deeds you have done in righteousness, but based entirely upon God’s mercy, grace, and love.

And why would God allow His one and only Son to die a sinner’s death He did not deserve in order to take upon Himself the punishment sinners rightly deserve for their sins against God, so that sinners could be forgiven and saved? “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Please repent and receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, while God has given you time.


Questions and comments regarding this and/or any other article on this blog can be sent to: info@crossencountersmin.com.

Three Typical Christian Responses to Sinners Sinning

Written By: Michael Coughlin
Edited By: Tony Miano

The homosexual agenda is in the forefront, as usual, but now it is due to the striking down of laws against polygamy in Utah, the recent dust up regarding Phil Robertson's (Duck Dynasty) overly-frank yet biblical remarks, and the Rose Parade allowing a gay marriage to take place on one of this year's floats.

Here are a few excerpts from the above, linked articles:

In the Religion Today article about the striking down of laws against polygamy, Tony Perkins, president of Family Research Council, said:

“But if love and mutual consent become the definition of what the boundaries of marriage are, can we as a society any longer even define marriage coherently?”

From the Charisma News article regarding Phil Robertson’s recent comments:

“Phil and his family claim to be Christian, but Phil's lies about an entire community fly in the face of what true Christians believe,” GLAAD spokesperson Wilson Cruz told E! News in a statement. “He clearly knows nothing about gay people or the majority of Louisianans—and Americans—who support legal recognition for loving and committed gay and lesbian couples.”

From the Huffington Post article concerning the Rose Bowl parade:

“At this year's Rose Parade, attendees can expect to enjoy the usual array of flowers, floats and marching bands, as well as an unexpected surprise to ring in 2014: a same-sex wedding ceremony.”

How should a Christian respond to these situations? It seems the responses range from irrational to altogether uncompassionate and everything in between. “Christians” everywhere seem to be really excited about this, and, as is often the case, will cling to any argument in the hopes of winning.

So let’s boil it down:

1. Lawmakers are following the same logic we used to redefine marriage for homosexuals to redefine it for polygamists (other groups). Christians and other socially conservative people have predicted for years this would happen.
2. A corporation is standing up for what it believes by punishing Phil Robertson.
3. Gay marriages are being conducted publicly in a state where it is now legal and celebrated.

In other words, sinners are sinning and celebrating their sin.

The first reaction we as the people of God need to have is to stop acting shocked.

I understand that there are sins which produce the gag reflex in someone. But when a Christian is surprised by sinners sinning, all the Christian does is exhibit the fact that he or she really doesn’t believe or study the Bible.

The Bible is clear that no one does good and that everyone has turned to their own way (Is 53:6, Rom 3:10-12 which is a quote of the OT). So why do we act shocked when we see sin displayed before us in the media and supported by many?

The problem lies in the fact that deep down in our flesh, many true believers still hold to the Doctrine of the Inherent Goodness of Man. Listen to this sermon Tony preached at the San Jose NorCal Fire conference earlier this year to help you understand man’s true nature.

Once one starts with the idea that at least some men are good based on what is perceived as moral living, a person cannot help but be shocked by the evil in the world. I submit to you that what should be more shocking to you is that anyone ever does a single righteous act.

The second problem lies in the fact that I think we believe by over-dramatizing our reaction, we will win people to our beliefs. Deep down inside the flesh, we find sincerity to be valued above truth. As Christians, we must always seek to be gentle and meek, respectful and kind, never repaying evil for evil, yet we must always exhibit through our actions that we really believe that it is the Word of God which changes people. (1 Thessalonians 5:15; Hebrews 4:12; Isaiah 55:10-11)

Let’s all repent and begin our view of any public event with a biblical worldview.

A second reaction to sinners sinning and celebrating sin ought to be a desire to see Christ magnified.

Consider the glorious beauty of Psalm 34:1-3.

"I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!"

How many of us, when we see what is going on in the world are outraged and our first thought is, “I must stand with Phil!” Or, “I am boycotting the Rose Bowl.” Or, better yet, you somehow feel vindicated that your slippery slope argument was right and, as was said in the first article linked above, are doing a sort of victory dance that God has allowed men to become so debased because now you’ve won that Facebook argument or Twitter debate.

If that’s your joy, it’s time to repent. Solomon tells us not to rejoice when your enemy falls (Proverbs 24:17-18), and falling deeper into sin or having a conscience so hardened that public sin is now someone’s thing is a falling! Christian brother or sister, you are a hypocrite if you stand by and exercise pride while judging others for their sins, particularly those upon whom God has not yet bestowed His saving grace.

Do you get it? The problem is not “gay marriage,” or “sister wives,” or “intolerant liberals.” The problem is sin and it is your problem, too, and you are not the solution. Your rhetoric, your arguments, even this blog post--none of these things are the solution. Only God can fix sin and only through the salvation of sinners by grace through faith in Christ alone. More laws, less laws, parades, boycotts, letters to the editor and the like are all ineffective tools of change for a culture God has abandoned. No dear Christian, your greatest weapon in this battle is your humility, and your willingness to spend more time on your knees than on social media “winning.”

Ask yourself, “How can I magnify and exalt the name of Christ as the result of these circumstances.” “How can I decrease and Him increase?” “How does He increase and I decrease?”

And here’s one good answer.

Or do you actually not desire to see “these people” saved? Praise God that salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9).

Another responsible and biblical reaction to sinners sinning and celebrating their sin is for the Christian to engage in self-examination.

I get it. Homosexuality is an abomination. It is destructive, ungodly and will be punished – along with sins many of us overlook in our own lives each day. Have the mind of Paul who found it no exaggeration to call himself the chief of sinners after penning the “homosexuals will not inherit the kingdom of God passage” (1 Timothy 1:15; 1 Corinthians 6:9).

And finally, when sinners sin and celebrate sin, you do not need to immediately respond.

Be thoughtful. Be rational. Use logic. Don’t make blanket statements you haven’t thought through like you think no one should ever be fired from a job because of their beliefs (think employee of your ministry or church and any number of beliefs). Don’t make legal arguments you don’t understand or are unwilling to backup. Let your every word be seasoned with salt and supportable by Scripture. Edify, instead of breaking down (Ephesians 4:29).

In summary, when confronted with these situations, or others like them:

1. Believe the Bible and act as if you believe it by not acting so surprised.
2. Turn your eyes upon Jesus and consider how you can serve Him.
3. Share the gospel with anyone who will listen.
4. Examine yourself and be conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29).
5. Use your tongue, the pen and your keyboard wisely as if you really believe God is watching.

We have free resources on the CrossEncountersMin.com website--written, audio, and video--to help you effectively and faithfully share the gospel with homosexuals and those who are pro-homosexual. Here is a three-part series I put together on the subject. Download them all today!

70 Good-Byes

Deputy Mike Arruda and three deputies responded to a motel in Hacienda Heights on June 9, 2004, after receiving a call that someone was firing shots and threatening people. When the deputies arrived, they went to the unit where the suspect was reported to be staying. As they walked toward the unit, the suspect exited carrying a pellet pistol that closely resembled a .40-caliber semiautomatic handgun. The suspect began firing at the deputies. The deputies returned fire, killing the suspect. One of the rounds fired by the deputies struck Deputy Arruda in the neck, seriously wounding him. Deputy Arruda was removed to Los Angeles County Harbor-UCLA Medical Center where he remained until his death six days later.

In this audio clip from a recent episode of Cross Encounters Radio (a free download), I share my testimony of serving as a chaplain in the aftermath of this tragedy, spending six days in the hospital, ministering to family, friends, and co-workers of Deputy Mike Arruda.

The people of America Do What is Evil in the Sight of the Lord

Presently, my daily Bible reading has me in the Book of Judges. The most repeated verse in the book is this: "And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord" (Judges 2:11; 3:7, 12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6; 13:1). Nothing has changed. Not only is Israel still in a state of gross defiance of God, as well as a state of depraved indifference to His wrath that presently abides upon them, the whole world is in the same iniquity-drinking, wrath-pending, judgment-awaiting boat. And the greatest producer, practitioner, and purveyor of debaucherous, licentious, lascivious, perverted, blasphemous, idolatrous, Christ-hating, anti-Christian forms of sinful, gluttonous decadence is the United States of America.

America, in her 237-year history, never has been, isn't currently, and likely never will be any different from what Israel was in the times of the Judges (a period of anywhere from 480 to 350 years). America is not "one nation under God." It is a broken, disjointed, and debased society under the influence of many false gods (the gods of Roman Catholicism, Mormonism, Muhammadanism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Atheism, Oprahism, etc.). Like Israel, "The people of [America do] what is evil in the sight of the Lord" (paraphrase of Judges 6:1a). Don't believe me? Then join me as I take a look at current headlines.

New Mexico becomes the 17th state to legalize same sex marriage.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

Olympic skating champion, Brian Biotano, announces to the world he is a homosexual in advance of his participation in President Obama's pro-homosexual delegation to Russia's 2014 Winter Olympics.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

Phil Robertson of Ducky Dynasty fame, while not choosing his words carefully, spoke the truth regarding homosexuality and the slippery slope acceptance of such a debased agenda places society. Yet the very people who demand tolerance from everyone while rarely if ever extending tolerance to anyone, want Robertson's head on a platter.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

"Following criticism from an evolutionary biologist, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County has removed a quote from one of its displays that alluded to God as being the Creator."

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

"A Portland-area teacher who was escorted from his local high school by police over his continued opposition to Planned Parenthood has been fired as district officials voted this week to terminate his long-standing teaching contract."

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

The pope, a man who denies the gospel of Jesus Christ while engaging in and encouraging a billion other people to engage in idolatry and blasphemous superstitious practices, is named "man of the year" by Time Magazine.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

A federal judge declared that Utah's laws against polygamy, laws demanded by the federal government to keep the Mormon cult in check before allowing Utah to become a state, unconstitutional. While standing in the path of the steep, moral decline of the United States--precipitated, in part, by the societal and governmental acceptance of the homosexual agenda--American Christians have long-warned that once same sex marriage was legalized, the legalization of other forms of sexual immorality would soon follow. It hasn't taken long, has it?

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

America continues to protect, aid, and abet mothers and fathers, doctors and nurses, who murder their unborn children. The murderous effort to continue America's worship of Molech is led by the wicked organization, Planned Parenthood--an organization our unsaved president blasphemously asked God to bless.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.

I struggle to sing "God bless America" during the seventh inning stretch of a professional baseball game. In fact, I can't do it anymore. Why should God bless America while she exists and persists in a state of perpetual rebellion against Him? The heart of America "is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it" (Jeremiah 17:9)? The physical and spiritual corruption of American makes the depravity of Noah's day, the debauchery of ancient Greece, and the decadence of ancient Rome look like youthful indiscretions in a G-rated movie. Yes, it's that bad. And God has given America over to its collective debased mind and filthy heart (Romans 1:18-32).

While I can't sing "God Bless America," I do want God to bless America. My prayer is that God will bless America with repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. My prayer is that God will so change the heart of this nation that the Beatitudes would define us as a people.

Does what I've written mean I hate my country and the people who call her home? On the contrary: I love my country and her citizens enough to pray for their repentance--to pray they turn from 2+ centuries of wickedness and turn to Christ. I love my country and her people enough to tell them the truth that unless they repent they will all likewise perish (Luke 13:1-5). But until America repents, she is nothing more than another lost people group living in rebellion against God.

The people of America do what is evil in the sight of the Lord. Lord help us.

Street Evangelist Bio: Robert Gray

The Osborne Brothers have produced yet another wonderful street evangelist biographical video. This one is about my dear friend, Robert Gray.

I first met Robert in 2009 when he attended the Ambassadors' Academy. I was immediately impressed with Robert's military bearing, quiet demeanor, love for Christ, love for the lost, and love for the Church. After 20 years of service as an Air Force officer and military law enforcement professional, Robert retired and soon set out to spend his life heralding the gospel of Jesus Christ, throughout the United States and around the world.

I am blessed beyond measure every time I get to spend time serving and fellowshipping with Robert. To pray with Robert is to be led into the Throne Room of Grace. Robert rarely draws attention to himself in a room full of people, but when he speaks he immediately commands the attention of others. A man of few words (unless he is preaching), Robert very rarely wastes his words on superfluous subjects or silly banter. When Robert speaks, I want to listen because I'm sure to learn something about manhood and Christian character.

Regarding his open-air preaching: Robert Gray is one of the very best. No one I know expresses love for Christ and love for the lost in the public square the way Robert does. At the same time, Robert preaches with command presence and fearlessness. Robert Gray is not only one of my favorite street preachers; he is also one of my favorite human beings.

A Conversation with Shawn Holes

Shawn Holes is one of the dearest brothers in Christ I know. He has an amazing testimony of how the Lord radically saved him. Shawn and his wonderful family have established Luke 10:2 Ministries. Christ has so transformed Shawn's life that he has gone from professional ski instructor and street fighter to a full-time evangelist, traveling throughout the world to herald the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Last year, Shawn and I had the joy of spending time together in Boise, ID, with our mutual friends Matt Slick and Ken Cook of CARM. Part of our time together was spent creating a series of evangelism-related videos for CARM. Here's one of the videos.

I'm an Evangelist, Not a Missionary

Kevin DeYoung, pastor of University Reformed Church, makes the point that while every Christian should be engaged in missions, not every Christian is a missionary. A missionary is one who is specifically sent (as God the Father sent God the Son, and as God the Son sent the apostles) by the church to go out and further the mission of the church in places where the Church or churches has not yet been established.

Dr. Don Fanning, Chairman of the Department of Global Studies, at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary, similarly writes:

“We are all called to Christ in salvation with the task of becoming a witness of His grace and salvation to unbelievers around us, but a “missionary” is to take this mission of evangelism to where Christ has never been know. This is certainly a deeper commitment requiring a broader cooperation and facilitation of the local church.”

As part of my research for preparing this document, I solicited the help (via email) of a number of pastors in making a distinction between the role of the missionary and the role of the evangelist. Here are a few of the responses I received.

Randall Easter, pastor of First Baptist Church of Briar (TX), wrote:

“Missionary - My view of today's missionary is one who is sent out by a local church to a place that God has made clear that they are to go. The work of the missionary is to reach people for Christ and disciple a native of that place to maturity in order that they can reach their own people. Once a solid foundation is laid the missionary returns to his local church and awaits his future assignment.

“Evangelist - My view of today's evangelist is similar to a missionary, but can have a different twist. An evangelist is sent out by his local church to an area in his own country that his local church desires to reach with the gospel. The evangelist goes to this area and preaches, teaches, passes out tracts, and gathers a people together who have interest in the things of God. Over time a core group is established and the Evangelist in appearance begins to look like a pastor. He then pastor's his core group and disciples them to reach others with the gospel and at some point a church is established. God then raises up from that area a pastor who can lead the people. The evangelist returns to his home church and awaits his next assignment.”

Oliver Baker, pastor of Woolwich Evangelical Church (Woolwich, London, UK), wrote:

“My understanding would be that a missionary is a church planter, as the Apostle Paul was, looking to establish local churches in places where there are few or none, over the longer term. The work of the evangelist is to work as part of a local church, or as or in conjunction with a missionary to preach the Gospel to the unconverted. By Gospel I mean the specific, soul-saving message of repentance and forgiveness of sins as opposed to the Roman Catholic concept of the Gospel as the whole Bible.

“A missionary establishes churches. An evangelist builds the church and although there is some overlap they are distinctions.”

Paul Washer, missionary and founder of HeartCry Missionary Society, wrote:

“I do see a tremendous difference between the missionary and the evangelist. Although their ministries are complementary, they are distinct. The missionary is one sent with authority to establish biblical churches and disciple men to become the overseers of the churches he has planted. Although he never ceases to do the work of an evangelist, he labors for the maturity of the church and its leaders. In the midst of this time consuming labor, the evangelist comes alongside the missionary and assists in making the Gospel known through preaching wherever the lost might be found.”

Finally, a word on the subject from Steve Lawson, pastor of Christ Fellowship Bible Church (Mobile, AL):

“The word missionary means ‘one who is sent,’ or ‘a sent one.’ A missionary is one who is dispatched by God, either through a local church, a denomination, or missions agency, and sent to a different location in the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. The goal of the missionary is sowing the seed of the gospel, doing initial discipleship work, planting a local church, and appointing elders.

“An evangelist, on the other hand, has a more narrow focus. He is a single-minded person, myopically proclaiming the good news of Christ. His desire is to go wherever the lost are, present the gospel, and urge them to faith in Christ. Rather than stay and plant a church, the evangelist usually moves on to the next venue in an effort to lead others to faith in Christ. He is restless in his drive to reach more souls with the gospel.

“In the New Testament, the difference between the missionary and the evangelist can be seen in the difference between Paul and Philip. The former was a missionary, and the latter an evangelist. As a missionary, Paul was constantly on the road, traveling to the next place, preaching the gospel, discipling the new believers, planting churches, and appointing elders. Philip, conversely, was, uniquely gospel-focused toward the lost. He was pointing people to Christ, persuading them to repent and commit their lives to Him.”

I believe there is a distinction to be made between the evangelist and the missionary.

I do not sense the Lord’s calling to plant a church or churches.

The Lord has affirmed in my heart and mind that He has not called me to shepherd a flock, but rather to serve as a sheepdog to the shepherd. Shepherds lead the flock. Sheepdogs assist the shepherd in gathering, directing, and corralling the flock.

Here are a few real life examples to illustrate my point.

In Beaverton, OR, under the leadership of Pastor Chuck O’Neal and the elders of Beaverton Grace Bible Church, I assisted the church’s leadership in the training and mobilization of the church body to reach their community with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Most were encouraged and equipped to engage people in one-to-one conversations and to distribute gospel tracts, while a few (under the direction of their pastor) were encouraged and equipped to take the first steps toward open-air preaching.

In St. Louis, MO, under the leadership of Pastor Geoff Kirkland and the elders in training of Christ Fellowship Bible Church, I did much the same thing I did in Oregon. In addition to the above, I assisted Pastor Kirkland in the discipleship of the men in the church as well as a much smaller group of men who are training to answer the call to eldership.

One of my first trips abroad, after the inception of Cross Encounters Ministries, was to Stavanger, Norway. There my primary mission was to assist Bjorn Storm, itinerant minister and the leader of one of the country’s first Reformed Baptist house churches in teaching the members basic Christian doctrine, equipping them to discern truth from error (as the evangelical church in Norway is being decimated by a “signs and wonders” cult known as Bethel Church), and equipping them to reach the lost in their country, with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Three distinctly different churches, in three distinctly different social constructs:

Beaverton Grace Bible Church (a well-established church, with years of presence in the community, in the liberal Pacific Northwest)

Christ Fellowship Bible Church (a church plant with just two years of presence in the community, in a densely Roman Catholic part of the Midwest)

Reformed Baptist home church (a fledgling work that continues to this day, growing toward establishing a bona fide church in their community, in a small country with a very low Christian population)

In each instance, I came alongside the shepherds to assist them in ministering to their flocks and in the gathering of their flocks (God's Elect) from the highways and the hedges through street evangelism (Luke 14:23).

This, I believe, is doing the work of an evangelist. This is what, I believe, God has called me to do and to be—an evangelist.

Coming Soon! Classic Sermons

This is my home recording studio. It consists of a Porta-Booth Pro portable sound booth, a Blue Mic Yeti Pro microphone, with Blue Pop screen, Sony MDR-X10 headphones, and my laptop computer.

We put some feelers out via social media, in order to gauge interest in an idea we've been kicking around for some time: recording classic sermons. I've been told, more than once, that I have a face for radio. Trying to build upon that reality, we wondered if people would listen if I recorded sermons from great preachers of old--men like Charles Spurgeon, Jonathan Edwards, the Puritans, and others. The response thus far has been surprisingly positive. So, we took a step of faith, purchased the equipment, and we're ready to go.

The first recordings will be a single, "Sinner's in the Hands of an Angry God" (Jonathan Edwards), and an album, "Spurgeon 1" (five sermons by Charles Spurgeon). In the near future, I will record an audio version of my book, "Take Up The Shield."

Our plan is to release the single and the first album with the launch of the new Cross Encounters Ministries website. The website, tentatively scheduled to launch by Christmas, is being designed and built by Ken Cook and Chris Hamilton of Prepared Marketing. The "Classic Sermons" recordings will be available on the new Cross Encounters Ministries website.

Stay tuned in the coming days for more information about "Classic Sermons."

Though Your Sins Are As Scarlet

It was a chilly morning (at least by Southern California standards) at the North Hollywood Metro Station. I was blessed to be joined by Steve (taking the picture), Aldo (center), and Dean (left) for a time of open-air preaching, tract distribution and conversations. Dean traveled quite some distance from Chino Hills. Steve referred to Dean as his church's "one man evangelism team." Aldo is a student at The Master's Seminary. He will leave for Miami, FL, later this month to begin working with an SBC/NAMB church plant. Steve leads the evangelism team at Calvary Bible Church in Burbank, CA. It was a wonderful time of fellowship and evangelism with these brothers.

My open-air for the sermon was based on the text, Isaiah 1:12-20. Several people listened intently as they waited for their bus. And several people walked up to take a free copy of the Gospel of John.

Street Evangelist Bio: Mike Stockwell

Andy and Alex Osborne of Life Light Productions has produced their second in a series of video biographies, of open-air preachers. This installment features my dear friend, Mike Stockwell.

I have had the honor and privilege of serving Christ alongside Mike Stockwell throughout the United States and Canada. He is one of the most passionate open-air preachers I know. He loves Christ, His Word, the Church, and the lost. Mike sold his business and just about everything he had to set out across the country to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, on the streets. The Lord has provided for Mike, through the loving hospitality and support of His Church. Mike has truly counted the cost of following Jesus Christ. Mike has denied himself, taken up his cross, and followed Jesus.

The Fast and Furious Death of Paul Walker

Actor Paul Walker, well known for his starring role in the "Fast and Furious" series of movies, was killed in my community on Saturday afternoon, in a fiery single-car crash. His good friend, Roger Rodas, was also killed in the accident.