The Calling

"Almost all the inane things Christians do to remain bound and religious ultimately funnel down to what they really believe about God. Many don't live free because they don't believe in a God who loves us enough to give us the gift of freedom".

A Scandalous Freedom - Steve Brown.

"Unless you turn and become like a child, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven".

Jesus. Matthew 18:2-3.

The Oasis (or the mirage?).

Where, in the present context, do you find yourself 'free' to express your (redeemed) life - worship?, sure (if it is worship),  but what about in what was actually promised to you.... life in abundance? Certainly, that may include some of the goodness we evidence in our being together or in enjoying the bounty God gives in health or material sufficiency, but I would also want to include a fulness which frees us to engage with things the way the Lord clearly spelt out to our predecessors - to go out and be the creatures we were intended to be.

"Think back to when you were a child, your soul was free, your heart ran wild, each day was different, and life was a thrill, you knew tomorrow would be better still".

Larry Norman.

So, pondering what I stated in my last paragraph, let me jump back to my childhood. The 'big adventure' when I was between around five and nine years old was a trip a few times a year to the seaside - usually Ramsgate or Margate. This included a coach ride, time on the beach, the fun fair, and a traditional fish and chip meal. Now there were times when things didn't work out as expected - the coach broke down on one occasion, and I managed to have sand blow into my eyes on another, and then there were times when sunburn or 'funny tummy' played their part, but at the end of the day, all of this was part of the experience - it was part of the whole realm of growing up, and it certainly didn't prevent a great deal of fun and excitement.

Why do I raise this? Well, it occurred to me recently just how much of what was deemed 'normal' about those childhood trips would be unsafe in the modern mindset - even deck chairs are now considered dangerous!

Life has become almost entirely about having the right safety net.

So, where should that line be made?

Think about Sunday church services as an example. Is the right 'line' made now in approving of 'on-line' events only, or, if you actually gather, should attendance only be for those who are masked, fully vaccinated, and socially distanced, attending by invitation only? Perhaps even that isn't enough - checks for the correct papers at the entrance, perhaps, or what about actual tests before the meeting? 

What surety is to be imposed for 'christian' assembly to be acceptable?

When we reach the point where church policy is such that vaccines are deemed entirely viable (and necessary) because the 'authorities' (secular and spiritual) say so, we have already crossed a line, because a greater evil is condoned - that of accepting the use of methods (to validate health) at the expense of the murder of the unborn (the cell line essential to present MRNA products).

Society is rapidly underlining such 'wisdom'. A new poster went up on the door of a local supermarket near to me this week - showing a enormous mask, which read "let's keep everyone safe" - just over a month into 'freeing' people from this requirement! In Hamburg, the authorities are preparing to implement a "G2" policy. Businesses who sign up will be rewarded for excluding anyone not vaccinated by allowing 'free' mixing of vaccinated people so long as they're continually socially masked (!). Children in the UK are already being told they will be vaccinated next and that masks will be required in common areas when they return to school.

All of this is happening in the shadow of a major study from Japan this week that indicates that a 'Delta Plus' variant of the virus is on the way which will almost certainly prove entirely resistant to ALL the existing vaccines, including the new boosters (as evidenced in Israel this summer).

So, why the perpetual return to restriction?

Why continue an unfit structure of prohibition?

We have been here (social segregation) before... many times before - imprisoned in a society in free-fall to the grip of exhaustively debilitating fear - and it killed the world, unleashing horrors from the depths of untethered human depravity. That's the trajectory, and the NEED is for the freedom that only Christ brings! Sadly the church decided that the 'winning hand' of the Gospel wasn't enough, so it threw it's gifts aside, cashed in its chips to the 'science' consensus of the powers that be, and joined the prevailing snake oil show, instead of standing fast and saying NO!!!

It has cast aside its vital role.

Priesthood is, amongst many other qualities, about dirt and surplus. The tabernacle is a place where the filth of us meets with the over-sufficiency of God's unmerited mercies. We bring our sin, God provides 'Himself, A Lamb' to meet that burden, and then bestows, indeed showers, his goodness upon us. In the place of meeting, the priest's hands would often be full of the bread, the oil and the offering, displaying the richness of God's blessings.

Is that us? Are we coming with nothing, but leaving with so, so much to enjoy and to share?

What would the last 18 months have been like if we had been that manner of free people? Oh, they would have no doubt been 'troubled' at every point by the powers of the day, but they gave so much to those in need because, it is abundantly clear, they have so much joy and genuine goodness! Imagine that was now the testimony of the day, as it has been many times in the past regarding the Christian church.

As Chad Bird noted this week, there is in reality only ONE mandate to humanity, developed and underlined by Jesus when He expands the work of the Kingdom at His ascension, and it is to go and live, freely, as God's children. Dirt, disease, even death are God's perogative to end or use as He deems fit, for our lives must rest in His hands, not our own wisdom. If we fail at this initial point, if we seek refuge in the grasp of human illusions about being the ones in control (clearly the predominant view promoted in this crisis), then we will become crushed beneath the rock of God's sure authority, rather than being those broken (and then healed) upon it.

A minister this week spoke of how he recently visited a local pub with friends for the first time since last year, and it was an uplifting experience as people enjoyed each other's company 'normally' once again. A few days later, he found himself isolated in a church service as he was the only 'unmasked' attendee.

It tells you everything about where the 'seen' church is in respect to Christian freedom. The glory of our calling, our nature, has been exchanged for mess of pottage that the state tells us is 'safe'.

There is mercy for those who see they are in error and turn away from their folly of such miss-placed confidence, but the requirements of God-ordained freedom do not allow us the option of merely pushing our heads into the sand, or thinking that toeing the line (the flawed policy of the hour) is good enough. Godly freedom requires us to stand up in such moments and to be counted, so know that you have made a choice, either to life or to destruction - there is no middle ground.

And now...

For a word of encouragement.

Enjoy. 

The Harshest Wounds

 "For even Satan himself is disguised into a messenger of light". 2 Corinthians 11:4.

Initially, it was a real delight to behold - the solution to the new pressing need to not just live, but to do so in the embrace of the new 'opportunity' of rising above the present into something far more promising for the future. All it would take was a minor negation... a small 'forgetting' of what had already been stated... not that great a cost to pay, really. Besides, the benefits were really enticing! What could possibly go wrong?

In my last entry, I sought to draw us to Paul's startling account of what was soon to unfold amidst the very 'temple of God' in respect to the rise of a power entirely anti-christian in its purpose. What is key to understanding this 'mystery' is the nature of the control this 'seat' (power) will establish amongst us.

Paul speaks of a 'lawless' agency becoming evident in the domain of religion and this causing the generation of great wickedness, but this is clearly not a disorganised or unfocused phenomena. From the moment of its rising, the intent is clear - the usurping and thereby the violation of divine rule derived from truth. The means of disruption is not chaos, but a replacement of laws with new commands imposed by this office - requirements that are deemed to be superior to those which had been in place.

The nature of the violation follows that of the serpent in the garden. Life, apparently, will be enhanced if we simply add to what has been provided by placing other impositions upon (above and beyond) these, so "ascension" (improvement) becomes a matter of compliance - taking and 'eating' what's offered, and living with the results.

This defines the nature of the profane - a "form of godliness" which, by its essential violations, denies the genuine means and work of God, manifest only in Christ.  The nature of evil from the beginning of this war has been to seek to undermine the spiritual value of the inherently material and replace this with some strange, aloof "wisdom", always beyond our reach.  The 'requirements' of false activity is to always create a perpetual ladder to be climbed, ever reaching for yet another 'stage' towards completion.

Which brings us to the present.

Some months along, the various 'means' imposed upon us have clearly become sorely wanting in their returning us to life as it was, and it is clear that the cost of these impositions will continue to impair us. This would be tragic enough, but the misery is only just begun!

Anyone taking the occasional glance at the mainstream news of late will have noted the continual slide into creeping, deepening restrictions. New York is now looking to mandatory vaccinations for all teachers whilst Scotland has accepted the Covid rules into law, and Cornwall is investigating mandatory testing for all visitors. This all pales, however, before what has now been imposed in Australia in the past few days.

People in many regions are limited to a three mile travel limit from their homes, and are not allowed outside at all between 9pm and 5am. Masks are now mandatory for everyone, everywhere. Religious services, weddings and related social activities are forbidden. Stray dogs will be shot on sight. Shops and Homes can be "checked" by the Police whenever it is deemed required. Thousands of children, without their parents, have been taken to large venues for vaccination. Self-isolating homes must display a government notice on their doors to inform others of their condition. Protests are banned. Unvaccinated people must not leave their homes at all.

Recent 'official' advice included - Don't take masks off to drink, Don't be friendly, Don't watch a sunset, Don't shop, even on-line (!).

Worst of all, three 'national resilience centres' (quarantine camps) are now  being prepared for use in 2022, probably for the unvaccinated.

It is clear, as these impositions continue and grow why this manner of slavery has always been about something far more wide-reaching than alleviating a troublesome infection. Numerous studies in the past twelve months have shown that the effectiveness of the most common and universal measures have been questionable at best, with the vaccine itself only providing a measure of protection and proving worthless in ending infection, but this has not impacted upon the continuing imposition of highly excessive action by governments.

The events of the past week have again revealed the 'lawlessness' abroad in our world - where requirements decreed by those in power have effectively generated perdition (utter destruction) upon those who have fallen victim to such decrees.

Such evil must be understood and exposed, must be rejected and must be countered by our speaking the truth in love.

The 'Order' of lawlessness

 "First, the man of lawlessness is revealed - the son of perdition". 2 Thessalonians 2:3.

"Clark would not bother to interfere with Armageddon unless there was ten percent in it for him". Robert Heinlein - Podkayne of Mars.

The Apostle Paul is very clear as to the nature and identity of the 'man of sin' who sets himself up in the 'seat' of authority in the world that will emerge once the imperial power of his day has been fragmented. As with 'emperors' or 'presidents', this position will be one which presides over a new power structure which will marry the opulence of the previous pagan empire with an even more insidious commerce amidst those who will submit to its commands, including the likes of rulers and entire nations.

There is little doubt as to which "dominion" filled these shoes.

From around the end of the fourth century until the middle of the 1500s, the office of the Bishop of Rome ascended to a point of unquestionable dicta in matters both temporal and spiritual, fulfilling the 'central office' (the seat of authority) of Paul's astute prediction. What shocks to the core is when we realise that it was amidst Christianity that this power was incubated, encouraged and brought to its full expression as a faculty of immeasurable malevolence, trading so cruelly in the decimation of the souls of men.

Luther's exposure of the canker at the core of this domain severely wounded it's grip, but it did not slay this leviathan, and amidst the monstrous evils of the times following The Reformation, the poison of Rome, as the Apostle John shows in his visions, has worked, covertly and overtly, to perpetuate evil. The Inquisition alone grants a vision of savagery chosen later as a model by the framers of National Socialism in Germany, who themselves were aided and supported by Romanism both during the war and in their escapes at its end. The recent findings in Canada of mass graves of indigenous children from the period when this religion provided "education" shows the same 'values' as those expressed in the Eastern European killing fields, or the massacres of Christian minorities such as the Waldensians.

The modern expressions of this abomination have become much more secular. The intention, John's images reveal, was to wield power over all men, and different means are employed to do this (hence, his visions of the 'sea' (Imperial Rome) and 'land' (Ecclesiastical Rome) beasts - Revelation 13), but at the heart of it all is the harlot (false church), riding the dragon, intoxicated on the blood of the saints (Revelation 17). Her 'fornications' with the 'merchants' of the earth becomes the means of shared wealth for those who congress with her.

From the days when the "Sons of God" first intermarried with the "Daughters of Adam" (Genesis 6) to bring giants (tyrants), the kingdom of darkness has sought to work amongst humanity by means of establishing realms of power and authority that are at odds with the rule of the majesty of the most high (Genesis 11), and the method they commonly employ to manifest this amongst us are realms of governance which are bent by policy and action to eviscerate the image of God amongst us and to enslave us to goals which are destitute of any value beyond immediate gratification or merely survival. Religion itself becomes method of marking humanity with the stain of a 'god' who merely facilitates all that is gross and deformed within us, discarding any notion of truth or beauty.

God does not leave us ignorant of all of these facts, and assures that in spite of such strident assertions, these powers will fall (Revelation 18 & 19), and that all will indeed stand before Him and His Son, either in faith or in judgement (Psalm 2).

The convulsions of our day remind us that this conflict is very much part of what is presently unfolding, but that we should not be shaken by such troubles, but should hold fast to the truth. The 'power' made evident in the 'seat' (office) of the 'mystery of iniquity' will finally be dissolved, notes Paul by 'the breath' of Christ's mouth' at 'the brightness of His coming' (2 Thessalonians 2:8), so until then, the 'woman' the Lord has clothed with true authority (Revelation 12:1) - the true church - must continue to be those who are faithful amidst 'great tribulation' (7:14).

This reality must be brought to bear in what is currently unfolding amongst those who profess to have faith in the Gospel. Are we a people who will pass through the present trials and pressures to conform to a 'form' of godliness (the governance of powers which require us to simply conform to all that is imposed and required as 'correct') or will we in fact pierce the facade of 'moralism' in this program and face the reality of what is being done - conforming society to a manner of rigorous controls that bleed away both personal responsibility and conscience?

This cannot be allowed to continue to be the 'voice' of the age.

Either the church stands up and rejects such blatant impoverishment of identity, or it will entirely sink into the mire of modernal inhumanity.

The 'seeds' of such a death - in the willing acceptance by so many of cell-line based vaccines - has already been sown, and the canker cannot be stemmed without clear and radical rejection of what this incursion involves - medicine derived from the extinction of the unborn.

We must indeed choose this day whom we will serve!

Beyond the contemporary smog

"Their fear of me is because of commandment taught by men".

Isaiah 29:13.

One of the worst things that can happen to a church is when it places itself beneath an erroneous rendering of scripture, which allows for an interpretation (and thereby, view) that stifles proper examination and correction.

There are numerous examples of how this has way-laid believers across the centuries - from the impositions of the Papacy, all the way through to the 'new' revelations of charismatic teachers, but here's a good example of just how easily error slips into the ear and thereby into the acceptance of those who do not prove (test) what's taught, as the helpful presenter on this video shows us.

This may appear to be a fairly small thing - 'we' have teachers who keep us in the boundaries of what is deemed 'true', comes the response, but the 'bearings' taken in such estimation say something extremely dangerous has been occurring amongst evangelicals for some time. One of the most important of the telling examinations of the trouble came in the 1980s from the pen of Dr Francis Schaeffer. Coming towards the end of his life and following lengthy studies of contemporary culture and theology, Dr Schaeffer showed just how distant mainstream evangelical teachings and practices had taken believers from the genuine roots of the faith.

What was shown in this and other studies is imperative to correctly examine the malady which has allowed contemporary Christianity to 'sleep walk' into the malaise of our current situation in respect to overbearing control and oversight. This 'guidance' makes little or no meaningful reference to the authority of God's word and therefore, cannot recognise the real impact of these troubles.

Authority here does not 'grow' by merely quoting popular biblical passages, but genuinely exegeting these to reprove, rebuke, correct and teach God's people.

Here are a few of the key insights missing in the modern evangelical church.

"The Reformation not only brought clear declaring of the Gospel, it also gave shape to society as a whole, including governance and a shared world-view covering the full spectrum of life and culture. The increase of understanding this supplied cascaded into every level of society" (Schaeffer - What really matters).

What happens to Christianity when this manner of active engagement is gone? Society 'de-faults' back to a manner of belief and action defined by self-determinism and fulfilment, meaning that other lives (i.e. unwanted pregnancies) are disposed of in favour of individual wants and needs (sexual preference/diversion). The old norms are entirely demolished before the single 'purity' of self- referentialism.

Schaeffer rightly identifies the reason such evil has murdered the life of faith in the West - the ascension of Biblcial Liberalism is such that, even amongst evangelicals, the "authority" of scripture has become a privatised affair - the only point of public declaration being the few occasions in a week where believers congregate. Such paralysis in culture is almost absolute, as Christians find themselves bent entirely to the demands of woke culture.

"Thus we must state with weeping, that "accommodation" is the 'wisdom' of the day".

Christianity, then, has in reality become a 'religion' set against the two vital commands of God - loving the Lord wholly, expressed in loving our neighbour well.

Expression of faith is not something confined to our 'small corner' enclaves on Sundays and at mid-week studies, but in a faith which troubles the supposedly settled life of a the world around us by expressing a love that is uncompromising. Christianity is marked by the joy and richness of significance that it uniquely reveals. Aching for those we know, cherishing the fallen the way our Saviour does (John 3:16) will mark our imperative.

The reason's behind this week's dreadful events in Afghanistan, as Paul Kingsworth notes in his piece, is the failure of the church.

"When a culture", he notes, "built around a sacred order dies, there will be lasting upheaval at every level of society, from the political to the level of the soul. The shape of everything - family, work, the existence of morals, sexual mores, perspectives on everything from money to work to the nature of the body to kin and duty - all of this dissolves".

The authority that Biblical truth provided was rejected by the rise of anti-christian autonomy in the 1700's, and this concluded with the disposal of now empty moral taboos in the sixties. Slowly, the new 'correctness', rooted in its own vile notions of modified socialism, has come to the fore.

The story we have come to believe is that we belong to a reductionist society where value is measured by what is arbitrarily determined to count "in the moment', because any other "religion" is anathema to that single truth. We respond to the requirements of those who wield power to provide this 'wealth' - there is no longer any other over-arching currency.

The innovation necessary now is for saints! Those who can exude genuine love, wisdom, truth and life because they are so deeply rooted in the truth that they can stand amidst the maelstrom, providing an embodiment of what is crucial to take us beyond this present madness.

Saints are not merely 'cloistered' in their strange, post-modernist cells, but those recognising the need to engage with the reality of the moment and dispense 'salt and light' to bear upon it.

The challenge such moments as now brings to us is to ask who is it we truly love? Where is our heart and soul when it comes to truth, for if our faith does not drive us to genuine desire to see others rescued entirely, then all our "orthodoxy" is woefully redundant.

Furnishing "polite" barbarism

 "That's exactly how complicit the Western Intellectuals were in facilitating the horrors of the twentieth century, and we haven't learnt anything since then - quite the opposite". Jordan Peterson on the 'problem' of Post-modernism. 

"Every day I got up and asked 'what must I do to protect life?' - we've got to tell people that they cannot do anything unless it is explicitly allowed or required by the law. We have to be Napoleonic in our application of the rules". Matt Hancock.

"There are a dozen views on everything until you know the answer. Then there is only one". C S Lewis - That Hideous Strength.

Evil is big on lies. 

When the 'relocated' arrived at Auschwitz or Treblinka, they were informed that they were on their way to accommodation and work, via a visit to a 'disinfection' facility for a 'routine' hygienic procedure.

The mainline church has informed us that accepting the "Napoleonic" requirements of the state has been the correct approach for Christians to follow in these past 16 months, allowing key moral, spiritual and medical concerns to be sidelined in the process.

My words here will no doubt appear somewhat harsh, if not entirely unacceptable, to some, but let me marry them to some very troubling thoughts...

How can we accept a vaccine as 'good' medicine when we consider the following:

"How do we respond to the processes that lead to their (vaccines) production - that is, the harvesting of organs from foetal children? Organ harvesting is not a thing of the past - it is very much a present evil, aborted children having their organs continually harvested for medical 'advance'" David Brennan - Brephos.

How can it be possible, on the basis of this observation alone, that Christians should be praying in their churches (as I have witnessed with my own ears) that we be encouraged to find 'security only in being double jabbed' (!). How is it possible, that Christian ministry groups should be excluding those that find such ethical concerns morally abhorrent, or that churches are actually being used as vaccination centres?

There is nothing good here, and to open the doors of the church so widely to such a poisonous and pernicious approach to the life of the unborn entirely blinds us to the evil of the times. How can we expect the faith to continue, let alone to thrive, on such a heinous premise?

The aborted child whose cell line was used either directly within or in the forming of the MRNA vaccines would have been a grown woman by now, possibly raising her own children, so NO, evil does NOT diminish over time - the sins we commit have very real and profound consequences upon others. Forgiveness becomes an empty set if there is no true repentance prior to its liberating reception (Psalm 51).

Currently in the UK, a facility exists in Cardiff that is collecting tissue in the very same manner as that employed via abortions some forty plus years ago. No doubt this 'line' of work will lead to other forms of medication in the future - are we to be just as accepting of that, and if so, why?

What amplifies the tragedy is that it would have been perfectly possible to manufacture MRNA vaccines without the use of any cell line material from this source - some are actually in the pre-production stage in various countries right now! - but the Pharmaceutical companies chose to manufacture them in this fashion.

Why hasn't the church employed wisdom here and insisted that the employment of such vaccination materials only be acceptable on the basis of best practice, not readily encouraging the use of such morally culpable 'medicine'?

Acting ethically and lawfully (in respect to what we wear, eat, and paying our dues) is vital to being faithful in this life, but 'obedience' to authorities does not extend to openly practicing something that God hates, and the murder of innocents clearly belongs in that category (Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalm 106:38).

The most troubling thing in all of this is that only now are some Christian leaders here waking up to the iniquity of what is occurring because of the possible (forthcoming) imposition of vaccine passports, but many of them entirely missed the issue when it came to the vaccines themselves at the start of the year, and this has lead to a dreadful state of most believers having participated in this evil.

The state's justification for all of its initiatives during this crisis is that 'doing' particular things (you know the list) is beneficial for all, and therefore, maximises the realm of security and safety, but as we have moved along that line, we have found the holes in such reasoning continue to expand to the point where essentially all of these requirements rightly deserve to be questioned and challenged, especially as the data grows that their implementation from the start has been faulty at best, and, in many cases, may have actually caused more death and suffering than they relieved.

The Christian makes a false assumption that such policies are merely established for society's good when we see this manner of governance. History tells a very different story, and scripture itself affirms the value of the lessons we should learn in such events.

The Old Testament record highlights that there were very few good Kings in the promised land - never mind beyond its borders, and even the very best were at times prone to heed their own ambitions or passions once they had power rather than lean upon the wisdom and value of what the Lord had bestowed upon them.

The vital requirement of the day is for God's people to acknowledge their sins, to seek the Lord together in repentance, and to not be content with anything less than a thorough reformation of faith and life.

The world will continue to abandon what is good at every turn, and especially where profit and power appear to be the rewards - the Lord will deal with that - but He requires far more of us.

Will we do what is needful, or will we squander His patient waiting (Revelation 3:20)?

Uprooted

 "These are the blemishes in your love feasts, looking always first to themselves - fruitless trees, twice dead when they should be fruitful, uprooted... wandering stars, for whom the unceasing gloom of utter darkness is reserved forever". Jude 12 &13.

"The Church of England has totally capitulated to market forces and managerialism. The tendency is to view the local parish as some inherited embarrassing knick-knack from a great aunt that you wish was permanently left in the attic". Alison Millbank.

"Risk assessments have been ordered before Civil Servants can return to workplaces...on the basis that not everyone will be vaccinated, raising the prospect of ongoing limits to number. The Government was 'alive' to the concerns over vaccines and how not all employees would be vaccinated, warning people 'might refuse to come back if colleagues aren't jabbed' ". Danielle Sheldon.

You do not need to look very far in real terms to discover just how often the innocent are readily defined as the guilty by those in power. When a particular unjust law becomes the premise for imposing violence and unwarranted penalties on such victims, we begin to see how readily society can throw entire communities away merely to uphold its idealised 'status quo'.

The serious consequences of the recent pandemic here in the UK began to rapidly drop several months ago, requiring a scramble recently to excuse the nightmare projections about the recent easing of restrictions. The far more worrying issue is how the state is encouraging a culture whereby those who have ethical or serious issues with certain policies are to be deemed excluded from as much of normal life as possible.

It would be easy for us to read such an approach as a mistaken national initiative, when in truth the situation informs us that a far larger geo-political goal is in play - it is no coincidence that such policies are presently being rolled-out everywhere.

It has also all been evidenced so many times before. 9/11 witnessed America and her allies at war in the Gulf amidst peoples who were entirely detached from what had happened in New York, but the pretext allowed certain interests to be served, whatever the collateral damage.

The interests being served now negate entirely the value and even the place of genuine community.

The established church speaks openly of 'virtual' worship on-line as a key component to what's ahead, marginalising any attempt keep what is good for the future. Society in general is now huddled around continually active screens attuned to the shamans of mainstream and social media for the 'correct' perception (and thereby the enticing rewards) of what is sanctioned and equitable for the 'defined' members of the emerging, respectable company of the 're-set' world. Those who determine to query such 'progress' due to reasonable concerns find themselves continually given a single choice - shut down your apprehensions and sign-up, or you will silenced.

The tipping-point has now begun to become evident amongst us. Companies have begun to implement procedures for easily dismissing those deemed no longer required due to lacking vaccination. Church organisations have already stipulated that state requirements on this matter must be complied with by workers or rejection will be absolute. This, of course, is a familiar pattern in all the annuals of tyranny, and once it has taken hold, there will be no means of stopping its inexorable 'progress' to where it must end - a world which allows 'membership' only when every criteria is properly met, and where any deviation is punished.

Once the infrastructure is in place we will evidence the true severity of social control. Observers have been noting for some time how internet 'crashes', sometimes across whole nations, have become an increasing issue in recent times, so it does not require a great leap to see how this 'threat' could quickly become the means for requiring users to ascribe to far more stringent controls over their usage in order to 'protect' them. The current on-line safety act is a clear step in this direction.

Whilst, no doubt, there will be those who earnestly seek to move us away from such pitfalls, the more moderate voices are what the powers are endeavouring to mute in the areas of general hearing.

Sometimes, what is vetted or kept in the background is too awful to contemplate.

In June of last year, we witnessed the discharge of some 25,000 patients back into care from hospitals, where it is evident that they were abandoned by the Health Service, not receiving the most basic 'shielding' (testing) necessary in the process. The reasons and the consequences in this matter are plainly abominable (see, for example, section 14 of the Coronavirus Act, which allowed the removal of key obligations required by the NHS to discharged patients, as stated in the 2012 regulations, clauses 21(2) a and 21/12).

In the next few months, we will begin to witness our society shedding hundreds of thousands of those deemed 'excluded' due to its abhorrent discrimination required by its new controls (passports) and absolute requirements (vaccinations), which will now perpetuate to ensure 'safety' for the vulnerable (however many jabs, masks and rules are imposed).

The troubling reality, as currently evidenced in Israel, is that the vaccines (including the new booster shot) are not diminishing the ability of the virus to thrive, especially amongst the vaccinated, and it may well be that the application of this approach (as opposed, for example, to providing prophylaxis, as delivered by Ivermectin) proves fatal as the new variants appear. The likely narrative to spring up around this will be that only total vaccination can achieve recovery, but such an approach is in clear dispute with the known facts... There is another agenda.

Policies implemented by emergency powers last March are about to reach a very chilling culmination in the coming necessary "adjustments".

Last year, we were placed on a 'war footing' because the "enemy" was amongst us. Such an action allows all manner of action not permissible in peace time, but this clearly was not 'war' merely upon an infection, but against the very fabric of normal life.

My hope is that such sobering considerations will begin to release us from the vice-lock of the present fear to speak up regarding what needs to be understood to see proper health restored to us all.

The Imperatives

 "I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart, recounting all of your glorious deeds. I will be glad, exulting you. praising your name, O most high". Psalm 9:1&2.

It's not so hard to figure out what Christian practice is all about. The first believers shared life together around good teaching, seeking God together in prayer and participating in common meals and the Lord's supper - and there was one other element - praise and worship. They would assemble themselves in thanksgiving.

The Psalmist makes it clear that for the believer, there is a genuine necessity to 'joy' in the bounty of the goodness which God bestows in giving us the many gifts of life (Psalm 8) and in His being our Redeemer (Psalm 91). Our meditations on these precious treasures is indeed sweet, and naturally over-spills into a need to raise our souls and bodies heaven-ward in adoration to Him who rains down every good and crucial blessing to furnish our days here.

The essential truth of such beauty is evidenced whenever we are allowed a glimpse into the majesty and radiance which pervades and adorns the cathedral of the Most High. Throngs of angels, too many to number, join in constant exaltation with Seraphim to the one upon the throne and to the Lamb, fulfilling the very purpose for which they were fashioned - to reflect something of the unfathomable glory of the Godhead.

In truth, all of creation has been clothed to express and make plain this same truth - that such a one is uniquely worthy of honour and praise, for He alone makes all things good.

It is with this backdrop that we must view recent events and ask why - why would the church ever become convinced that ceasing to be actively engaged in such a plain necessity is a viable option?

Can such a vital proclamation end??? Can we entertain a 'form' of spirituality where the view given to us in scripture is subjugated to 'necessity' in respect to the directives of external impositions?

Since the creation of the realm we can see and in which we 'have our being', it is clear that a 'song' of delight has been offered to the Lord, so to believe it is required for this to be silenced is folly. Our brief days here, as Solomon notes, must be marked by the wisdom of revelling in what is provided and being thankful for such days, so adversity and hardship should amplify our appreciation of unmerited care.

In truth, we can no sooner deny our vocation to praise than we can our need for breath or water - it is simply essential to our living well and offering to our sustainer and deliverer all that makes life true.

The Letter

 "Beloved... I found it necessary to write to you, appealing to you to contend for the faith". Jude 3.

Some of you may recall a posting here a few months ago concerning a letter signed by several hundred Christian ministers to government in respect to rejecting the use of vaccine passports in churches and society.

Given the recent escalation evidenced on this, I'm delighted to inform you the letter is to be re-issued for a second time, with many more signatures added.

I am also grateful to the Irreverend team for their work in facilitating this conversation on the issue today, which brings to the fore some of the key material on this matter highlighted in the letter.

Irreverend's broadcast yesterday chose to examine the story of how a corrupt king Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26) sought to use the temple of God for his own purposes, and had to be stopped by both the priests and the Lord, but the problem in our day is that there has been almost total silence and suspension of action against the powers who have done this in the past year.

As I noted in the comments on Irreverend's You Tube broadcast yesterday: "The 'King' (government) presumed to enter the 'temple' (auspices of the church) last March, deeming it to be "non-essential" as it 'burned insence' to the supremacy of science, and here, there was not one, never mind eighty, bold men to stop them. As one English monarch would have put it, 'the birds had flown". If you sign the passport letter and then act like the guy from the UBM (preventing unvaccinated Christians from engaging in ministry), then that tells you just how anaemic the church here is. Oh, for some Doug Wilson's in the UK church!"

I'd thoroughly recommend a read of J L Fuller's recent but already best-selling book, Romans 13 and Covid 19 to examine where we have gone so wrong, what is now unfolding, and where this is leading.Let us pray that God's people will indeed seek in these days to become a city on a hill in respect to their witness and testimony for freedom and truth.

The divide

 "Choose this day"....

(Based on actual events)

The man stood between the two buildings.

On his left was a high street pub. Aside from a notice for an app to order online, the welcome signs made it clear that the place was doing everything it could to receive customers with the level of hospitality resumed that had been customary before the 'troubles' had come. It brought a moment of levity to him on this wet morning - something stamped down fast by where his eyes turned next.

On his right was a bank. The first glance was of the demanding poster - 'masks must be worn at all times'. No 'freedom day' here, but a confirming of the order made on that same day in the next poster - a scan card for your NHS app - only those doing what it required would be allowed access. The yellow bars on the pavement remained to 'remind' you that social distancing was also imperative, and the sanitisation stand was prominently in evidence, next to the 'assistant' to confirm full compliance with the rules before any entry.

Two worlds, he thought. Sadly, the one he'd first glanced appeared to be the one that was quickly passing away.

He turned to notice the church across the street. A moment of curiosity took him forward - 'I wonder which of these two realms I'll find there', he mused, as he crossed the road to find out.

"WELCOME" said the sign outside, in bright, friendly letters - no troubling posters like those on the window of the bank - 'a promising start', he thought, heading for the entrance.

About to cross the threshold, his heart sank.

The scan card, the sanitiser, the 'receptionist' in a mask... all present and correct.

Disheartened, he took a final look at the notice board -

'join us on line, or book your visit with us', said the official notice.

'Following the bank then, and not the pub', he thought as he moped back into the rain.

'The just shall live by rules'...

Postscript.

So much of church has become transactional instead of worshipful. Don't get me wrong - I love liturgy in word and sacrament that points us to the fact that the 'great transaction's' done, so confession and absolution are vital and true, but that cornerstone should then open the way for joyful, whole-person praise and adoration of the Father of all things and His redeemer. Rivers of living water should be flowing out from the Christian community to parch the thirsts of the weary and heavy laden - an infectious joy should be our telling nature.

I was delighted to hear today about the new 1517 music medium to aid us in such a life. Christian music should be genuinely true, poignant and challenging, as well as edifying - here's a classic example of how our faith can furnish just such apt commentary on a moment that still echoes around the world decades later.

Exclusion.

 "And those who seemed influential added nothing to me". Galatians 2:6.

The 'Weaponisation" of culture has continued apace this past week. A woman in Australia, double-jabbed and masked whilst jogging, and another in Canada who had medically verified her natural immunity and sought 'identity' (papers) on that basis have both been prosecuted under covid regulations. New York has followed Saudi Arabia in implementing requirements that prohibit around 70% of ethnic minorities in the city from engaging in any indoor public recreational activities until vaccinated. Germany has forbidden protests which question official policy on vaccinations and related I D materials, whilst parts of Australia have deployed military manpower to enforce the new lockdown. It is now illegal in France to serve unvaccinated people, bringing a prison sentence whilst growing numbers of services and Venues in the UK only allow access on presentation of the appropriate app.

All of this occurs in the same week that a research department in Israel, having finished tests on over 5,000 types of existing drugs, announced they have discovered some 18 generic forms of medication that are effective against the virus, so the actual need for vaccination may well prove unfounded in the months to come.

Whilst resistance to mandatory measures has been evident in many parts of the world (in spite of the MSM's refusal to show it), large sections of the church continue to relent to official divisive requirements, some bodies taking the view that only those complying with all the imposed demands can be considered 'obedient' (in a Romans 13 sense) and therefore suitable for inclusion into full church activity.

Such action derives from the view that Christian faith includes a moral imperative to always do what is ordained by secular authority, regardless of the consequences, but this is clearly contrary to the behaviour and convictions we encounter in many circumstances by those who sought to serve God first. When a culture imposes rules which effectively shut-down the role and presence of the church within society, then we must certainly reject the power of state to do so. Yes, we (the church) may decide that a temporary suspension of some activities is appropriate to gain clarification in a situation, but to succumb to any continual, long-term suppression of worship and ministry without a just reason is a clear abandonment of our true service.

In Luke's account of events in the early church, we read of how a particular group became active who sought to claim a superior role to others, principally because they sought to re-instate the rulings of the Mosaic law, not only upon Jewish believers, but equally amongst the gentiles. The ramifications of such 'moral' action brought about the assembly of the first church council (Acts 15), in which it was clearly affirmed that God makes no such requirement (verse 28) and that freedom to serve should define church fellowship and growth, not authoritarian decrees and requirements. This, however, did not hinder the pro-law lobby (who became known as the Judaizers) from spreading their erroneous dogma amongst the gentile world, leading to all manner of disruption, which, in truth greatly damaged the ministry and calling given through the liberation gifted in the good news.

Legalism is often the device employed by evil to bring Christians into a bondage to all manner of extra notions and practices in respect to what is taught as defining 'godliness'. Paul spoke of how a Christian community - which had been known for all manner of weaknesses and required corrections in respects to moral and spiritual issues - which slipped from the pure simplicity of the good news of the gospel into some contrived, diabolical 'wisdom' was a very genuine fear (2 Corinthians 11:3). We should equally be disquieted by this hour - genuinely troubled as to where recent 'requirements' have now placed many churches in respect to their theology and practice. Exclusion is simply not an option on medical grounds, however 'moral' the wrapping may appear.

The events (especially in respect to official mandates) of the times have made it imperative to convey the perspective I have sought to affirm here in many of my postings, conversations and actions. The continuing to tighten restrictions in such a way that small yet significant numbers of those expressing alternatives must be exiled is neither a permissible or desirable position, and is extremely dangerous - it threatens to overturn the essential conventions between the state and the autonomy of individual expression in respect to their own volition in matters of conscience and free choice, and that is simply is a truth we must respect.

The V I C T O R

 There is but One Way out of this labyrinth of fear and shame. As Larry Norman put it, the way was set down long ago, when the spikes went in the wood...